You load your recycling bin with paper, plastic, and glass then haul it to the curb or drop it off. But where does it go from there?
Well most of it ends up here, at TFC Recycling in Chester, Virginia. Tim Lee of TFC Recycling says, "TFC recycling collects, processes, and markets basically post consumer recyclable materials." The recyclables arrive all mixed together so it must be separated and about 95% of the sorting is done by hand.

The first step is to remove the cardboard and any trash, allowing all of the other papers and containers to continue down the conveyor. Next the newspaper is mechanically separated from the glass, plastics, metals and mixed paper. The newspaper is now ready to be shipped out. "Your newspapers will go to a local paper mill to be processed back into other paper products, commonly things like tissue paper or Kleenex."

The mixed papers are further sorted by hand, while the containers continue on. Any metals are removed by large revolving magnets. "Steel tin food cans will go to a smelter to be melted back into tin plate"

The glass is broken into smaller pieces and shipped out, leaving the plastics. "Your soda bottles are going to go to a processor that will granulate or flake the material and turn it back in to fiber, used in carpet for example."

But before these materials leave TFC they have to be weighed and bundled. This is done using one centralized machine and is accomplished very quickly. "We process probably a good 10 tons per hour." From here these materials are shipped worldwide to be processed and given a second life.

And here is an interesting side note... You know the glass spaghetti sauce jars? For years I was taught to take off the metal lids and trash them but it turns out both the glass jar and the metal lid can be recycled as long as they are separated.

Below is a list of what can and can't be recycled through the Charlottesville curbside and RWSA recycling programs.