WM, the nation’s largest hauler, opened its $90 million Pembroke Pines MRF in south Florida, and expects the facility to process about 275,000 tons/year of material.
Located near the Miami-Dade/Broward County line, the new MRF is among the largest and highest-volumes in the WM network, said David Myhan, area vice president for Florida. “It utilizes state-of-the-art equipment that leverages artificial intelligence and optical sorting technologies, which we expect to increase the amount of materials we can process for recycling.”
With capacity to process more than 60 tons/hour of recyclables, the facility equipment, supplied by CP Group, features 18 optical sorters, and employs AI, volumetric scanners and fire suppression. The technology will allow collecting and sorting of more types of plastics, including yogurt containers and PP cups, as well as reduce contamination for higher-quality recycled commodity bales.
The new facility includes an Education Station, to reinforce recycling-related messaging and teach best practices. In 2022, when the company announced the new site, a press release said the station would measure 1,200 square feet and could be used by school and civic groups, as well as municipal and customer communities.
In 2022, WM embarked on a plan to invest more than $1.4 billion in 39 new and upgraded recycling facilities across North America, and expects these investments will add about 2.8 million tons/year of processing capacity by the end of 2026. Earlier this month the company opened two new MRFs in Ontario, in support of the province’s new EPR legislation.
WM has 105 recycling facilities, 49 organics processing sites, and recovered 16 million tons of material in 2024. The company also processed 3.8 million tons of mixed organics that year.
Last November, however, WM closed its Natura PCR film operation, only months after starting up a new $150 million plant, amid challenging market conditions.
