Waste Management Opens New Facility in Houston

Houston-based Waste Management (WM) has officially launched its Houston material recovery facility (MRF). The MRF measures 40,000 square feet.  

WM says the MRF will process single-stream material. The company says single-stream recycling programs can boost recycling rates by as much as 50 percent. WM’s new facility will include two new pieces of technology. One is a "paper magnet" for removing small paper and recyclable residue from the container stream. The other is a "paper spike" that mechanically removes boxboard/chipboard from ONP. It will include magnets and eddy currents to capture the remaining metals.

Waste Management CEO David Steiner, says, "Waste is no longer something to get rid of – it's a resource. That's why Waste Management is leading the way in implementing innovative solutions such as single-stream recycling to benefit the communities and customers we serve. We are proud to make the investment in this facility to help move Houston and the surrounding region to the forefront of recycling."

Waste Management invested more than $15 million in the new facility. The Houston MRF is designed to sort and process more than 9,000 tons of recyclable newspaper, cardboard, aluminum, glass and plastic per month. Additionally, the plant accepts a range of materials that have historically been discarded, such as film plastic and rigid plastics, expanding the range of materials that can be recycled.