Thank you for your question about how we handle old urban trash can recycling. It's an important part of our commitment to sustainable waste management.
When public works departments or municipal contracts notify us that bins have reached end-of-life, our specialized collection teams transport them to our processing facilities. There, we begin a thorough sorting process - separating different plastic types, metals, and mechanical components. Modern composite bins get different treatment than traditional metal containers.
The actual recycling involves several stages. Plastics are cleaned, shredded, and processed into pellets for manufacturing new products. Metal components are sent to smelters for reprocessing. We're particularly proud of our smart bin recycling program, where we recover electronic components and batteries for proper handling.
What makes our approach unique is our circular model. Approximately 30% of materials from old bins get repurposed into new municipal waste containers. The remaining materials become park benches, recycling bins, or construction materials. We've partnered with manufacturers to create this closed-loop system.
We also provide detailed sustainability reports to our municipal partners, showing exactly how many tons of material we've diverted from landfills and the carbon savings achieved. Last year alone, we processed over 50,000 urban bins across our service areas.
The future looks promising too. We're currently piloting a program using RFID tags to track bins throughout their lifecycle, which will help optimize replacement schedules and improve recycling efficiency even further.