Northeast Secondary Sortation Project to launch this month

The Northeast Secondary Sortation Project will launch this month, measuring the potential for additional recovery of recyclable paper and plastic in the Northeast, according to a news release from the American Chemistry Council (ACC), Washington.  

“America’s plastic makers have set a goal for all plastic packaging to be reused, recycled or recovered in the United States by 2040,” says Joshua Baca, vice president of plastics at the ACC. “New business models and improved traditional and advanced recycling technologies are key to helping us achieve our objectives. We look forward to working with Titus MRF Services and the other participants to further study how these technologies can help move recycling forward, particularly for plastics.”

The Northeast Secondary Sortation Project, a partnership between ACC and California-based Titus MRF Services, will work with targeted material recovery facilities (MRFs) in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New York and Vermont to collect samples of container line residuals, otherwise destined for landfill. This material will be sent to Titus for compositional analysis and to determine whether additional recyclables could be recovered through secondary sortation.

The project is the first of its kind on the East Coast. In 2019, the Pacific Northwest Secondary Sortation Project conducted similar testing in Oregon and Washington. Additional materials recovered in a 60-day study included polyethylene, mixed paper, cartons, polypropylene, polystyrene and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles and thermoforms. The research concluded that, if implemented at a regional scale, serving the populations of Oregon and Washington, a secondary sortation facility would reduce greenhouse gas emissions by more than 130,000 tons per year, equivalent to taking more than 27,600 cars off the road, the ACC says.

 “Our mission is to create a pathway for closing the loop for all materials collected for recycling for the benefit of all stakeholders, says Mike Centers, founder and president of Titus MRF Services. “We hope this project is the first step toward advancing secondary sortation in the Northeast region.”

 Data generated from the study will help inform decision-making on methods to enhance recycling, create a more circular economy for plastics and reduce the amount of waste material sent to landfills. Project staff will follow Centers for Disease Control guidance on COVID19 worker protections as well as local and regional public health guidance, the ACC says.