[0:01] Hello and welcome to the recycling

[0:02] training. My name is Angelo and I will

[0:04] be taking you through the class today.

[0:06] There will be a short quiz offered at

[0:08] the end of the class where you can test

[0:09] your knowledge. If you're here because

[0:11] your recycling carts were taken away for

[0:13] contamination, you must take the quiz to

[0:15] get your carts back. The quizzes are a

[0:17] way of knowing that you took the class.

[0:21] I want to start off with a brief

[0:23] overview of all the services our

[0:25] division of solid waste and recycling

[0:26] provides. We service primarily 1 to four

[0:29] unit residential buildings. Our services

[0:32] include garbage, recycling, organics,

[0:35] large item collection, and seasonal yard

[0:37] waste pickup. We also offer a voucher

[0:39] program where you can bring your excess

[0:41] materials to our south transfer station.

[0:43] If you have any questions about the

[0:44] services we provide, please call our

[0:46] customer service line at 612-6732917.

[0:56] Now we can get into what we're all here

[0:57] for, recycling. 97% of our customers

[1:00] have a recycling cart. To help measure

[1:02] the success of our recycling program, we

[1:04] track something called the contamination

[1:06] rate, which tells us the percentage of

[1:08] our recycling stream that is not

[1:10] recyclable. In 2023, we found an average

[1:13] of just below 12% contamination, which

[1:15] is up from our 9 12% in 2022, but still

[1:19] well below the national average of over

[1:21] 15% contamination. Our recycling is sent

[1:25] to be sorted by Eureka Recycling. We

[1:27] will talk a lot more about the sorting

[1:29] process later. Eureka also handles the

[1:31] marketing and sale of our recyclables.

[1:34] Any profits that we share with them go

[1:36] towards keeping the rate down for our

[1:37] customers. Our education process

[1:40] involves our crews inspecting the carts

[1:42] prior to dumping in the truck. If they

[1:44] find contamination, they will leave a

[1:46] tag indicating what the problem material

[1:48] was. If you get more than one of these

[1:50] tags within a six-month period, a work

[1:53] order is automatically generated for

[1:55] your recycling carts to be removed. To

[1:57] get your cart back, you can either pay a

[1:59] $15 fee and get your cart back right

[2:01] away, or you can wait 3 months and ask

[2:04] for it back, or you can take the quiz

[2:06] that's offered at the end of this class.

[2:11] So, what makes something recyclable?

[2:14] Well, it must be able to be collected,

[2:16] so it must fit in your cart at home. And

[2:18] it needs to be able to be sorted. This

[2:19] is a major reason why many things you

[2:21] think are recyclable are not. And we'll

[2:24] go in depth on the sorting process soon.

[2:26] And finally, it needs to be able to be

[2:28] marketed, meaning it needs to be

[2:29] economical for someone to buy it and

[2:31] turn it into a new product.

[2:35] Recycling is collected in your blue

[2:37] carts at home and brought to a material

[2:39] recovery facility or MURF. Our MURF is

[2:43] called Eureka Recycling. They use a

[2:45] combination of people and equipment to

[2:47] sort the material into about 15

[2:49] different categories. Those materials

[2:51] then get sold and shipped to end markets

[2:53] where they're made into new products.

[2:55] We'll talk more about what those

[2:56] products are later in the class.

[3:03] We're now going to go over how the

[3:05] facility sorts your recycling into those

[3:07] different categories because we believe

[3:09] understanding how this process works is

[3:11] the easiest way to remember whether

[3:12] something can be recycled.

[3:15] When the material arrives at the

[3:16] facility, it is dumped onto a large

[3:18] cement floor called a tip floor. It is

[3:21] then scooped onto a conveyor that evenly

[3:23] distributes the material so it can be

[3:25] sorted.

[3:30] Its first stop on the conveyor is the

[3:32] presort house. Here there are people

[3:34] manually removing items that should not

[3:36] be there. This is called a negative

[3:38] sort, meaning they are subtracting or

[3:40] taking things out. They focus mainly on

[3:43] items that will damage the equipment.

[3:45] Plastic bags are the most common. It's

[3:47] important to note that workers in the

[3:48] presort house are instructed to remove

[3:50] anything that is bagged. They will not

[3:52] open the bags. This is for worker safety

[3:55] as they have no way of knowing if there

[3:56] is something hazardous inside of the

[3:58] bag. So, it is removed and the entire

[4:00] thing goes in the trash. This is why

[4:02] it's best not to bag your recyclables

[4:04] and simply dump them loose into your

[4:06] cart at home. Other items removed in the

[4:09] presort house include things like scrap

[4:11] metal, pots and pans, clothes hangers,

[4:14] electronics and batteries, propane

[4:16] tanks, and anything that is too big to

[4:18] go through the sorting equipment.

[4:20] Unfortunately, not all contamination is

[4:22] caught in the presort house, and plastic

[4:24] bags and films are the top items that

[4:26] sneak through.

[4:30] After the presort house, the material

[4:32] goes over star screens. These separate

[4:35] out the two-dimensional from the

[4:36] threedimensional objects, so your paper

[4:38] and cardboard from your containers. The

[4:41] paper will bounce over the top of the

[4:43] screen while the containers fall through

[4:45] the gaps. The photo on the left here is

[4:48] what it looks like when they are clean,

[4:50] while the photo on the right is what

[4:51] they look like when they're covered in

[4:53] plastic bags and film. When plastic bags

[4:56] and film get on the star screens,

[4:58] there's no longer space for the

[5:00] containers to fall through. You can see

[5:03] there are two workers cutting out the

[5:05] bags. Every sorting facility in the

[5:07] country has to shut down at least twice

[5:08] a day to do this. Not only is it costly

[5:10] to shut down, but it's also dangerous

[5:12] for the employees who have to crawl into

[5:14] the machine and cut out the bags.

[5:19] The material then continues along the

[5:21] conveyor where metals are sorted using

[5:23] magnets and plastics are sorted by

[5:26] computers and air. Magnetic steel cans

[5:29] get pulled off the conveyor by a strong

[5:31] industrial magnet, while your

[5:33] non-magnetic aluminum is sorted by

[5:35] something called an eddiurren.

[5:37] It works kind of like a reverse magnet

[5:39] using electromagnetic waves to push the

[5:41] aluminum over a barrier separating it

[5:44] from the rest of the materials. This is

[5:46] pictured on the left. Plastics are

[5:48] sorted using optical sorters pictured on

[5:50] the right where the machine sends a beam

[5:52] of light down toward the material and

[5:54] then reads what bounces back telling it

[5:56] what type of material it is and where

[5:58] it's located on the conveyor. If it is

[6:00] the material that optical sorder is

[6:02] looking for, say for example, number one

[6:05] plastic, it will then send a poof of air

[6:07] that will send that material flying over

[6:09] a barrier, separating it from the rest,

[6:11] similar to the editor. People often ask

[6:14] us, how clean does your recycling have

[6:16] to be? And the answer is, we clean our

[6:19] recyclables for the cleanliness of your

[6:21] bins at home and for the people hand

[6:23] sorting. However, if your recycling is

[6:25] so dirty that it is too heavy for those

[6:27] poofs of air to push the material over

[6:29] the barrier, then it won't get sorted

[6:31] properly. So, a quick rinse is fine to

[6:33] keep the smells at bay, but as long as

[6:35] it feels like an empty container, it

[6:37] will be sorted correctly and recycled.

[6:42] So, now that you have a good

[6:43] understanding of how the material is

[6:45] sorted, let's go through each type of

[6:47] material.

[6:49] The general rule for paper is that if

[6:51] it's designed to come in contact with

[6:52] food, it cannot be recycled. Remember,

[6:56] for paper to be sorted correctly by the

[6:58] star screens, it must be flat. So, make

[7:00] sure you're flattening your boxes.

[7:02] Non-recyclable paper includes wrapping

[7:05] paper, tissue paper, napkins, towels,

[7:08] and anything that goes in the freezer or

[7:10] is meant to come in direct contact with

[7:12] food.

[7:16] Although cartons are technically paper

[7:18] products, we want them to be sorted like

[7:20] plastic containers. This is because they

[7:22] require special processing due to their

[7:24] waxy coating. So, they are bailed

[7:26] separately from your typical cardboard

[7:28] and office paper as they are shipped to

[7:30] different end markets. This means that

[7:33] you don't want to flatten them. Keep

[7:35] your cartons in their original

[7:36] three-dimensional shape so that they can

[7:38] be sorted correctly. The same goes for

[7:40] cardboard cans. Please keep them

[7:42] three-dimensional.

[7:46] Accepted metals are steel and aluminum.

[7:48] The sorting facility can only handle

[7:50] your smaller food and beverage

[7:52] containers. Please do not put any scrap

[7:54] metal in your recycling cart at home as

[7:56] it is dangerous for both the humans and

[7:57] the equipment at the sorting facility.

[8:00] Aluminum foil is accepted if it's clean

[8:02] and smashed into a ball that is at least

[8:04] 3 in round or the size of your fist.

[8:10] Plastics that can be recycled are

[8:12] numbers ones, twos, or fives. These are

[8:15] usually your beverage, kitchen,

[8:16] bathroom, and laundry containers. You

[8:18] can check on the bottom of the container

[8:20] for the little chasing arrow sign with

[8:22] the numbers in the middle. Please make

[8:24] sure to leave out any bags, films,

[8:26] styrofoam, and anything that contain

[8:28] hazardous waste, usually indicated by a

[8:31] caution, hazardous, or flammable label

[8:33] on the container. A good rule to

[8:36] remember is that if anything was not

[8:37] meant to go down your drain at home, it

[8:40] should not be recycled.

[8:45] Remember, just because a plastic

[8:47] container has a chasing arrows recycling

[8:49] symbol on it does not mean it's

[8:51] recyclable. Only symbols with the

[8:53] numbers 1, 2, or 5 indicate that

[8:55] something is recyclable. An easy way to

[8:58] remember these numbers is to make the I

[8:59] love you sign in American Sign Language.

[9:01] And counting from your thumb, it's your

[9:03] first, second, and fifth fingers.

[9:06] Black plastics are the one exception

[9:07] here. Remember that plastics are sorted

[9:10] using optical beams. Well, those beams

[9:12] cannot see black plastic because black

[9:14] absorbs all light and no nothing bounces

[9:17] back to the machine to read. So, it

[9:18] blends in with a conveyor belt and the

[9:20] machine never sees it. So, please leave

[9:22] all black plastics out of the recycling.

[9:27] The main thing to remember for glass is

[9:29] that it must be a food or beverage

[9:31] container. Meaning no empty candles,

[9:33] broken drinking glasses, Pyrex,

[9:36] ceramics, etc. This is because these

[9:38] products have different melting points

[9:40] than your food grade glass and will

[9:42] cause imperfections when they're made

[9:43] back into new products. Mason jars are

[9:45] the one exception here as they are

[9:47] considered food grade glass.

[9:52] Glass is sorted by actually being

[9:54] intentionally broken into very small

[9:56] pieces at the sorting facility. And so

[9:59] anything less than 3 in in size will

[10:02] fall through the sorting equipment and

[10:03] end up with the crushed glass. Glass is

[10:06] sent to a secondary sorting facility in

[10:08] St. Paul where the glass is sorted by

[10:10] color and size and anything that is not

[10:12] glass goes in the trash. The most common

[10:15] small items that end up in the glass

[10:17] include batteries, caps, and shredded

[10:19] paper.

[10:23] So, anything you put in your cart that's

[10:25] less than 3 in is going to end up in the

[10:27] crushed glass and eventually in the

[10:29] trash. In order to keep our glass clean,

[10:31] we ask that you keep your caps on your

[10:33] bottles. Even though plastic bottles are

[10:36] a different type of plastic than their

[10:37] caps, bottles are usually number ones,

[10:39] while caps are usually number fives.

[10:41] They can still be recycled together.

[10:43] This is because the first step in the

[10:44] recycling process is to grind it up and

[10:46] wash it, during which the two types of

[10:49] plastic naturally separate as the caps

[10:51] float and the bottles sink, allowing the

[10:53] recycler to easily separate the two

[10:55] different types of plastic as shown in

[10:57] the video. For metal caps, you can put

[11:00] them inside of an empty steel can and

[11:02] pinch the lid shut. This ensures that

[11:04] the cap will make it to the magnet and

[11:05] get recycled along with the can.

[11:10] Once everything is sorted into its

[11:12] category, it is bailed up so it can be

[11:14] easily transported to its end market

[11:16] where it's turned into new material.

[11:21] These bales usually don't have to travel

[11:23] far. 95% of our recycling stays in the

[11:26] Midwest and 100% of it stays within

[11:28] North America. You might hear national

[11:30] news stories about how stuff isn't

[11:32] actually being recycled, but what's

[11:34] happening on the coast doesn't always

[11:35] apply to us because waste is so local.

[11:38] The NPCA estimates that recycling

[11:40] supports over 77,000 jobs in the state

[11:43] of Minnesota alone.

[11:48] So, what does your recycling actually

[11:50] get made into? Well, glass and aluminum

[11:52] can be recycled an infinite amount of

[11:54] times. Therefore, glass can be recycled

[11:56] back into glass products. And same thing

[11:58] with aluminum cans. Fun fact, aluminum

[12:01] cans are recycled and back on the shelf

[12:03] within 60 days of you putting them in

[12:05] your cart. and it only takes 5% of the

[12:07] amount of energy to make a recycled can

[12:09] that it does to make a new one. Paper

[12:11] can be recycled about seven times. This

[12:13] is because the fiber lengths get shorter

[12:15] and shorter each time they are recycled.

[12:18] End of life paper recycling creates

[12:20] things like egg cartons where they need

[12:21] to be press molded into their shape.

[12:24] While technology is improving to be able

[12:26] to recycle a plastic bottle back into a

[12:28] plastic bottle, most plastics cannot be

[12:30] recycled into equal products and are

[12:32] often downcycled or recycled into

[12:34] something else. For example, plastic

[12:36] bottles could turn into synthetic fibers

[12:38] to make clothing and carpeting.

[12:42] Be on the lookout for problematic

[12:44] packaging. There are currently no laws

[12:46] when it comes to what packaging

[12:47] producers can put on their products. So

[12:49] don't believe everything you see written

[12:50] on the packaging when it comes to

[12:52] recycling. And remember, when in doubt,

[12:54] throw it out.

[12:58] The easiest way to recycle correctly is

[13:00] to keep it simple. Stick to the things

[13:02] that are on your recycling guide and

[13:04] remember these key items. Food,

[13:06] beverage, laundry, and bathroom

[13:08] containers. Plastics 1, 2, and 5. No

[13:11] black plastics. No paper that is

[13:13] designed for food contact. Keep all of

[13:16] your containers 3D and flatten your

[13:18] paper products so that they can be

[13:19] sorted correctly. Never put plastic bags

[13:22] in recycling and nothing smaller than 3

[13:24] in or bigger than a 3 gallon pale.

[13:27] Simple, right? If you're ever in doubt,

[13:29] just throw it out. Unless you want to be

[13:31] a super recycler, then you can find out.

[13:34] The internet is your friend when it

[13:36] comes to finding answers on recycling.

[13:38] We have a disposal guide that you can

[13:39] search for items on and you can always

[13:42] email or call us with your questions

[13:47] or you can join our Facebook group. We

[13:49] have over 2,000 members and people post

[13:51] their recycling and waste related

[13:53] questions daily to be answered by us.

[13:59] That concludes our class. If you're here

[14:01] to get your recycling cart back, be sure

[14:03] to take the quiz. That is how we know

[14:05] you took the class. You must get a score

[14:07] of at least 14 out of 20 on the quiz.

[14:09] You can take it as many times as you

[14:10] need. Once completed, you will receive

[14:12] an email within three business days

[14:14] indicating if you passed and when you

[14:17] can expect your cart to be returned. If

[14:19] you are not here to get your cart back

[14:21] and would like to take the quiz for fun,

[14:22] that's totally fine, too. You can scan

[14:25] the QR code on the screen now or click

[14:27] the link in the description of the video

[14:28] to access the quiz.

[14:32] Thank you very much for attending our

[14:34] recycling training and please don't

[14:35] hesitate to reach out with any

[14:37] questions. Thanks again. Bye.