City of Pembroke Pines Recycling Transition and Bulk Services Changes
Mayor Frank C. Ortis Regarding Recycling and Bulk Services
Waste Pro Information Regarding Recycling
Bulk and Yard Waste Information
Current Recycling Process through January 1, 2022
Now, through January 1, 2022, all waste and recycling programs shall remain as it currently is, and recyclable material will continue to be sent by Waste Pro to the Reuter Recycling Center. As a result, the City of Pembroke Pines continues to ask residents to source separate their materials between their garbage and recycling carts through January I, 2022.
Transition to the Waste-to-Energy Recycling Process
Beginning January 2, 2022, all residential trash and recycling materials collected from singlefamily residences by Waste Pro will be sent to the Wheelabrator South Broward Waste-toEnergy facility located on SR7/441 where it will be converted into electricity by incineration. By Florida statute, the incineration of refuse materials to make energy is considered recycling. This transition is the result of changes in the global recycling market and contamination issues. In the global arena, the U.S. no longer can sell recycling to China. Costs have risen three times from what they were when recycling began due to low, and in some cases, no demand in the global marketplace for materials such as glass and plastics #3 through #7, combined with the low value of mixed paper and high rates of contamination. If the recycling is contaminated with waste, the contaminated recyclables end up in the landfill. It is estimated that between 10% and 40% of the recyclable materials collected in Pembroke Pines are contaminated, making them non-recyclable. As this is the case for many cities, incineration has become best practices.