Current Plastic Recycling Practices
Step 1:
Sorting
Penn State uses a multi-stream recycling system, where participants must sort their materials into 7 types of recyclables or trash. While multi-sorting requires significantly more time and effort than dual or single-stream recycling, the University has little flexibility in changing this system because of the processing facility requirement that recyclables be separated by material type.
The only time that different recyclables are collected together is during tailgating for football games. Participants recycle metal and plastic together in blue bags distributed by OPP and student volunteers. The tailgating “blue bag” initiative cost nearly $9,000 to implement but doubled the stadium’s recycling capture [10].
Step 2:
Collection
Penn State OPP collects the bags of recyclables from multi-stream recycling stations throughout campus and transports them to the Centre County Recycling and Refuse Authority (CCRRA) processing facility. During football games and tailgating, the recyclables collected from the blue bags are hand-sorted by OPP and CCRRA for over 850 hours before being processed – about 25 tons of blue bag material is collected at each football game [1].
Step 3:
Processing
The bags of sorted recyclables arrive at CCRRA, where they are hand separated by material. During this process, CCRRA documents, photographs and rejects any bags that they deem “too contaminated.” One of the most common reasons for rejecting plastics is liquid contamination – people are not emptying the contents in plastic bottles before recycling the bottles [3]. The rejected bags are then brought to the CCRRA transfer station, and Penn State must pay fees for the contamination. In 2018, the CCRRA rejected 66 tons of recyclables [3] In addition to the contamination penalties, Penn State also pays tip fees for sending recyclables and refuse to the CCRRA.