Giant green recycle bins across western Washtenaw County are continually filled by dedicated recyclers. As Board members of the Western Washtenaw Recycling Authority (WWRA), representing eight local municipalities, we would like to thank the committed citizens that support this program. The WWRA invites you to become our partners in recycling. By implementing a few key steps you can help the WWRA become more efficient.
Recyclables are picked up from the bin sites or curbsides
and are taken to the WWRA material recovery facility on Werkner Rd in
Lyndon Township. Upon arrival, the various materials are sorted, prepared
for shipping and sold to business that will reuse them. The recyclable
materials accepted include newspaper, magazines, white office paper,
cardboard, plastics #1 and #2, glass, tin and aluminum.
The plastic sorting process is labor intensive. The plastic number can be found on the bottom of most items. Deli trays can not be recycled at this time. Lids and caps on plastic bottles are made of different kinds of plastic that can not be recycled. The WWRA must manually remove these lids before the containers can be processed. Removing and disposing of the lids prior to placing them in the bins will save the WWRA staff time and reduce expenses.
Please rinse your plastic, glass, tin and aluminum containers. It does not take long but it helps the people that manually sort these items. Clean recyclables are more easily sold and may fetch higher prices.
The green recycle bins are exchanged on a regular basis because they can fill up quickly. If they are full, please bring you recyclables back at a later time. Recyclables left in front of or next to the bins pose a safety hazard and make it difficult for the WWRA trucks to replace bins.
Couches, refrigerators, propane tanks and even a bathtub, among other things, have appeared at the recycle bin sites. While this may sound humorous it is unfortunate that local governments must pay to dispose of these items. If you see someone dumping junk please take down their license plate number and alert local officials. The WWRA can help you find ways to deal with difficult to dispose of items. Please call the WWRA at (734) 475-6160 with any question or comments. Or e-mail WWRA Board Member, Brent Courson at BrentCourson@chartermi.net .
Thank you for supporting the WWRA recycling program. With your help we can operate more efficiently and economically. We look forward to our new partnership with you that will keep valuable resources out of landfills.
