Last week, a ribbon cutting ceremony was held for Charleston County’s new Material Recovery Facility (MRF) at 8099 Palmetto Commerce Pkwy. in North Charleston. ♻️

The new 57,000 sq. ft. facility, announced in 2017, can process 25 tons of recycled material per hour + will have the first fully automated scale of its kind in South Carolina.

Just last year, Charleston County was dumping recyclable materials at the Charleston County Landfill (1344 Bees Ferry Rd.) because the county simply could not process the surplus of recyclable materials. According to Charleston County Councilman Vic Rawl, “Right [that] second, there [was] no place to send the recycling.”

In addition to the overload of recyclable materials, Charleston County’s contract with Horry County – allowing Charleston to ship materials to Horry County’s facility for processing – ended last February. Materials began piling up at the landfill to be processed at a later, undetermined date.

Now, the $30 million project managed by the Charleston County Facilities Management Department has the capability to process all recyclable items in Charleston County at a rate five times faster than previous county facilities, saving an estimated $1.5 million each year.

So, what does it cost us? It’s estimated that the average homeowner in Charleston County will only see a $10 annual payment increase to solid waste management. 💵
Need a refresher on what can + can’t be recycled? Check out this list from Charleston County Environmental Management of some dos + don’ts of reusing, reducing and recycling.