SUEZ is committed to the daily challenge of protecting the earth’s precious resources and ecosystems. We provide innovative solutions to millions of people across various municipalities, proving unmatched expertise in some of the most complex recycling and solid waste systems.
Waste Recycling Challenges
Waste Management Concerns
Each year, an additional 110 tons of waste end up in landfills across the United States and Canada. With an outdated and unsustainable landfill model, we are not only facing pollution on land, but also in our water. Canada’s annual per capita of waste produced is an alarming seven per cent higher than the United States. Even though almost all Canadians have access to a waste recycling system and a majority use it, high contamination rates and improperly sorted materials may be cancelling out the intended impact for recycling.
Industrial Recycling Policies and Regulations
The industrial recycling industry has always faced challenges from stringient environmental policies, but in 2018, a new issue surfaced. Until then, China was consuming over 30 million tons of waste from all over the world and consuming 55 percent of the world’s scrap paper each year. To create a better domestic collection market, China launched its National Sword Policy. This set a much stricter standard for contamination levels and banned 24 types of solid waste — and massively disrupted North America’s multibillion-dollar recycling industry as a result. As recycling programs are being impacted, businesses must find new markets to sell their materials to prevent them from going into landfills.
Lack of Employee Training
Recycling facilities are often affected by poorly trained workers who lack the knowledge of how to work complex machinery and keep it running. Without properly trained staff or consistent processes, waste recycling operations will underperform.
Industrial Recycling Solutions
SUEZ is an expert in different waste recovery and recycling methods tailored to support your unique needs and meet the many challenges posed by materials and their conditions for reuse. Our sorting centers and waste recovery platforms use the latest technology to treat a wide variety of hazardous and non-hazardous waste streams, including biowaste, paper/cardboard, plastic, wood, ferrous/non-ferrous metals, waste electric and electronic equipment, solvents, oil, infectious clinical waste and more. In addition, we provide expertise in specialized “downstream” channels and sales networks for recovered waste. We have the expertise to ensure contamination rates are compliant with the latest regulations, and our network of dedicated experts can help maximize performance of industrial recycling programs.
