Colorado Recycling
Are there any plastic recycling facilities in Denver or Colorado?
I’m doing research to find out if there are any actual plastic recycling facilities here in Colorado (or anywhere in the West or the United States). There are sorting facilities here, and a glass recycler (Wheat Ridge-based Rocky Mountain Bottle Company), but are there any companies who actually recycle paper here and turn it into pulp or paper for sale/use? Are there more factories that melt and recycle glass into new bottles? Any plastic recycling of any type? If not, it seems like this would be a great business opportunity for people who want to make a difference! I’m currently doing online research to find out what companies here in Colorado actually recycle the materials into raw or new materials for re-use. Is it true that we have been shipping all of our recyclables (for the most part) to China?
Here’s an interesting read from: https://coloradosun.com/2018/09/18/recycling-in-colorado-is-tedious-cost-prohibitive-voluntary-and-evolving/
Excerpt:
“And there are U.S. companies paying for our recycled waste. International Paper, based in Memphis, Tenn., has 18 recycling facilities in North America to feed recovered office paper and corrugated boxes to mills making new paper products. Old plastic soda bottles are snapped up by carpet mills in Georgia and made into, well, carpet. Trex uses plastic grocery bags to make its faux-wood patio deck boards.
The MillerCoors-owned Rocky Mountain Bottle Co., based in Colorado, recovered 300 tons of recycled glass, shipped it to Denver and repurposed it in bottles for Coors Light, Miller Light and Blue Moon just during last fall. Also in Colorado, Penrose-based Applegate Insulation said it can’t get enough old newspaper, which the company turns into spray-on insulation, paper shavings for pet bedding, mulch, and products that safely absorb industrial spills and liquid waste.
Ball Corp., in Broomfield, buys used aluminum, a lucrative business. The metal can be reused infinitely in products such as cans for Longmont’s Oskar Blues beer.”
Read full article: https://coloradosun.com/2018/09/18/recycling-in-colorado-is-tedious-cost-prohibitive-voluntary-and-evolving/
Ball Corporation, who has locations in Broomfield and Golden, does work to recycle materials to create new packaging such as glass bottles, jars, and aluminum cans. I’m not certain if they recycle the materials on site, but I’ve reached out to them to learn more. Here is some Recycling info from their website:ball.com/recycling
