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In our last blog, we addressed single-stream (also known as single-sort) recycling and why the trend is declining across the country. As you read that, you might have been wondering – what are the other options for recycling methods? Businesses of all kinds generate quite a bit of waste and are concerned with ensuring that they are being environmentally friendly in their waste removal. It’s understandable, then, that curiosity about recycling methods arises.

In addition to single-stream recycling, dual-stream and multi-stream are also methods used for collecting and sorting recyclables in preparation for reuse. Let’s take a look at the difference between the three methods, and the pros and cons of each.

Single-Stream

Though popular for many years, single-stream is waning in popularity due in part to China’s recently implemented restrictions on accepting items for recycling. Because single-stream means that all recyclable items, regardless of material, are together in one container, the opportunity for contamination is very high. For example, non-recyclable items are more likely to be placed in a recyclables container if someone doesn’t have to pay as much attention to sorting materials at all. However, single-stream machines aren’t perfect – glass can get crushed and caught in cardboard, pieces of metal might slip through and end up sorted with paper, and so on.

While certainly convenient and a great way to encourage recycling, single-stream is expensive – especially with China’s new restrictions – and more waste removal services are moving away from providing the option for recycling.

Dual-Stream

Dual-stream recycling is exactly what it sounds like – two different categories for recyclables. Instead of throwing everything into one container, as with single-stream, people can split up recyclables by general category. Paper and cardboard products go into one bin while metals, glasses, and plastics in another. This is a convenient solution for a business – think restaurant or bar, especially, but even an office where people are regularly consuming soda from cans or bottles as well as going through paper at a large pace. You’ve probably seen it in action – one waste basket for cans and bottles, and another for paper goods.

Dual stream helps prevent against contamination of glass or other materials within paper and cardboard recycling, but it is less convenient for the person recycling as it does require at least two bins and a level of sorting, albeit a simplified version.

Multi-Stream

Multi-stream recycling, as you might have guessed, requires a more extensive level of sorting from the consumer. Paper, glass, cans, plastics…all have to go into their own separate container. At a business or at a home, this can be time-consuming and take up space given that each product requires its own bin.

This method is more work on the recycler’s end, but on our end – the waste management and processing side of things – it means less contamination.

That said, though, there is of course plenty of potential for human error. We all throw things into the wrong bin – plastics into a bin meant for metals, or a plastic bottle into the trash by accident or vice versa.

Plus, multi-stream recycling requires a lot more collection equipment and a bigger time commitment during collection on our end. Instead of having one or two compartments on a truck to toss in and separate materials, we need compartments for each individual type of material.

Because of the time commitment and expense on both ends of the recycling process, for the consumers and waste management entities, it’s easy to see why multi-stream recycling fell out of fashion and single-stream started to emerge as a new trend.

With single-stream becoming less popular, municipalities, companies, and waste management entities are exploring all options to find a balance between doing what is best to promote and implement the important practice of recycling, while doing it efficiently and doing it well.

If you would like to learn more about our services for businesses, contact us today.

Everyone agrees that recycling is a good thing. The more waste we can keep out of landfills, the better. Glass, paper, plastic…so much of what we use in our households and at our businesses can be recycled instead of ending up in a pile taking up space on the planet. But we are always looking for ways to improve our services. Right now, that includes looking beyond the single-sort recycling trend.

Why? We want to provide recycling services that are most convenient, effective and affordable for our customers.

We understand how important it is to not only go green but remain green, so we offer a range of commercial and residential recycling services tailored to your specific needs. Troiano offers cardboard recycling, plastic recycling, paper recycling and even hazardous waste recycling.

However, single-sort recycling is increasingly expensive and is falling out of favor in the waste management world for a variety of reasons.

The Basics: What is single-sort recycling?

Single-sort recycling means that you don’t have to separate out your recyclables before heading to a facility for processing. You can throw plastics, glass, cans and cardboard all in one bin and have it taken away to a facility with the technology to sort it there.

Optical scanning is a technology used to process recycling that has been brought in through the single sort system. A 2015 NPR report on single-sort recycling had the apt description that a single-sort machine is similar to a grocery scanner. Instead of barcodes, it scans chemical content to assess which materials can be sent where. Magnets to separate out metal are also used for processing, as is manual sorting.

Issues with processing

The technology for single-sort scanning is great, but it is far from perfect. While it might sound easy to throw everything in one container, problems arise for single-sort when non-recyclable items get tossed in the pile. While you probably know not to throw plastic bags in your recycling bucket, your neighbor might not. Glass breaks in processing, and shards can end up being mixed in with plastic or paper.

In some circumstances, this kind of mess can’t be properly processed. Instead of the materials being recycled, they end up in the landfill. That’s not something any of us want to see happen, and it’s one of the major problems with single-sort recycling.

The China factor

When imperfect sorting occurs and does it make it through to be packaged, it can create problems further down the line. Much recycling in the United States is eventually sent to China for processing into new products, but China has recently instituted new standards for accepting recycled materials.

Rather than accepting materials with a 1-5% contamination rate – contamination being things like broken glass mixed in with recycled paper – China now only accepts a .5% contamination rate and below. When China won’t buy recycled materials, but towns and businesses are paying to pick it up and process it, the cost to you, the recycler, must increase to make up the difference.

We don’t want to see costs increased for you. We don’t want to see you recycling less, or have to cut our services to make up for machine and human error that is pretty much unavoidable with single-stream recycling. Instead, we want to provide you with the best service possible that keeps you happy and keeps our planet clean. That’s why at Troiano Waste we are constantly working to find the newest technologies and newest trends in waste management.

If you or your company could use some assistance dealing with waste management needs, we would love to talk. Just contact us today.

For more than four decades, we’ve been proud to serve greater Portland and northern New England. We attribute our success to two things: first, our loyal customers and second — the reason we have loyal customers — the fact that we’re family-owned and operated.

In the communities that we serve, word of mouth means everything when it comes to business success. Without satisfied customers and referrals, you simply don’t last long in Maine and New England.

From day one, it has been our priority to offer the highest level of customer service. We’ve stayed family-owned and operated all these years, and because of that we’ve been able to continue making customer service our number one priority.

Customer service that puts the customer first

Because we’re family-owned, we get to make the decisions about how we operate our service. Everything from the actual waste management to how we handle phone calls is decided at the local level. We know that everyone is happier when they can speak directly to an actual person and get actual answers rather than having to press buttons and argue with a robotic voice recording to get what they need. When you call Troiano Waste, you get to speak with an actual human. That’s right, even with all of the technology today, we’ve decided that our customers are best served when they can have an actual conversation with a knowledgeable staff person and get answers or schedule a pickup without jumping through electronic hoops.

Local knowledge from local waste services experts

The Troiano family is from greater Portland, which means that we have a deep understanding of the needs of the community as well as the local businesses that keep our area thriving. We’re able to offer advice about waste management services to local businesses, as well as make adjustments to services to ensure that the needs of those we serve are always met. When you need our help, we’re there for you.

Waste management services on your terms

Being family-owned also means that we aren’t answering to a large, out-of-state corporation about revenues. So we make decisions about the types of services, contracts and costs based on the knowledge of what best serves our customers. That’s why when you work with Troiano Waste you will never have to commit to a long-term contract. This approach has worked for us and our customers for over forty years, and we’re confident that our work speaks for itself so well that we don’t need to lock customers in to a long contract to keep them as customers.

At Troiano Waste, we’re proud to have been founded by family and to still be owned by family four decades later. Being family-owned means more to us than just a slogan to use in advertising. It’s a commitment to personalized service, outstanding work, and knowledge of the customers and communities we serve. After all, it’s our name on the door, and our reputation we’re working to uphold. To do that, we need to serve you well and continue meeting the high standards we set for the business forty years ago.

So, if you’re in the market for a trusted local waste services partner, we would love to talk. Just visit our contact page to give us a call or to drop us a line.