What Happens to Your Recycling After It Leaves the Curb in Milwaukee County?

Most people in Milwaukee County know they should recycle. Blue recycling carts sit outside homes every week, filled with cardboard, bottles, cans, and paper.

But have you ever wondered what actually happens after the recycling truck picks it up?

The process is more complex than many people realize. Your recyclables go through several steps before they eventually become new products.

Here’s a behind-the-scenes look at what happens after you put something in your recycling bin in Milwaukee County.

Step 1: Collection from Your Home

In Milwaukee and surrounding communities throughout Milwaukee County, recyclables are collected through curbside recycling programs operated by local municipalities or contracted waste haulers.

Residents place accepted materials in their recycling carts, typically including:

• Plastic bottles and containers

• Glass bottles and jars

• Aluminum and steel cans

• Paper and cardboard

Items should be clean, empty, and dry before being placed loosely into the cart so they can be properly sorted later.

When the recycling truck arrives, the contents of the cart are emptied into the truck along with recyclables from hundreds of other homes.

Step 2: Transportation to a Recycling Facility

After collection, the mixed recyclables are transported to a Material Recovery Facility (MRF).

For much of Milwaukee County, recyclables are processed through regional recycling facilities that separate and prepare materials for reuse. One major facility serving the area is operated by Waste Management in Germantown, which processes large volumes of recyclables from southeastern Wisconsin communities.

When trucks arrive at the facility, the materials are unloaded onto a large area known as a tipping floor, where the sorting process begins.

Step 3: Sorting the Recycling

Inside the recycling facility, the mixed recyclables move through a complex system of conveyor belts, screens, magnets, optical scanners, and human workers.

The sorting process usually includes:

1. Manual Pre-Sorting

Workers remove large contaminants or items that cannot be recycled, such as hoses, clothing, batteries, or electronics.

2. Mechanical Separation

Machines sort materials by size, shape, and weight. Flat materials like cardboard and paper are separated from containers like bottles and cans.

3. Magnets and Optical Sensors

• Magnets pull out steel and other ferrous metals

• Optical scanners identify different types of plastics

• Air jets push materials into designated sorting streams

These technologies allow recycling facilities to process massive amounts of material efficiently every day.

Large regional facilities serving Milwaukee County can process tens of tons of recyclables per hour, handling material from communities throughout southeastern Wisconsin.

Step 4: Baling the Materials

Once sorted, the recyclable materials are compressed into large blocks called bales.

Typical bale categories include:

• Cardboard

• Mixed paper

• Aluminum cans

• Steel cans

• Plastic #1 and #2 containers

• Glass

These bales make the materials easier to store, transport, and sell to manufacturers.

Step 5: Selling Materials to Manufacturers

After baling, the materials are sold to manufacturers that use recycled material to create new products.

For example:

• Cardboard and paper may become new shipping boxes or packaging

• Aluminum cans can be melted down and turned into new cans

• Plastic bottles may become new containers, carpeting, or clothing fibers

At this stage, recycling becomes part of the global commodities market. The value of recyclable materials changes constantly based on supply, demand, and manufacturing needs.

Step 6: What Happens to Contamination?

Not everything placed in a recycling cart can actually be recycled.

Facilities throughout Milwaukee County commonly receive contamination such as:

• Plastic bags

• Garden hoses

• Food-contaminated containers

• Non-recyclable plastics

• Batteries and electronics

If these items cannot be separated or recycled, they are removed during sorting and sent to a landfill.

In many recycling systems, contamination rates can approach 20% or more depending on what residents place in their carts.

This is why following local recycling guidelines is so important.

Recycling’s Role in Milwaukee County’s Waste System

Recycling plays a major role in Milwaukee County’s overall waste management system.

Local governments and waste-management organizations aim to divert as much reusable material as possible away from landfills while recovering valuable resources.

In addition to curbside recycling, programs throughout Milwaukee County also support:

• Household hazardous waste collection

• Electronics recycling

• Composting programs

• Construction and demolition material recycling

Together, these efforts help reduce landfill use and conserve raw materials.

The Bottom Line

When you place an item in your recycling cart in Milwaukee County, it doesn’t simply disappear.

Instead, it goes through a detailed multi-step process:

• Collected from your home

• Transported to a recycling facility

• Sorted by workers and machines

• Compressed into bales

• Sold to manufacturers for reuse

Recycling works best when residents follow local guidelines and place only accepted materials into their carts.

A cleaner recycling stream means more material can be recovered, reused, and kept out of the landfill.