In collaboration with Rehrig Pacific Company, a bin manufacturer, not only the black bins, but also the old blue recycling bins will be given a new life.
SAN DIEGO — As the City of San Diego continues to roll out the new, gray trash bins to homeowners, the old black bins are being recycled, according to the city.
In collaboration with Rehrig Pacific Company, a bin manufacturer, not only the black bins, but also the old blue recycling bins, collected from more than 225,000 households eligible for City trash pickup, will be given a second life. According to the city, more than 750,000 containers will be recycled.
While the new gray bins hit San Diego homes, the old black trash bins are being collected and taken to the Environmental Services Operations Station in Miramar, according to the City of San Diego. At the yard, crews clean and disassemble the trash bins— removing the wheels and metal bars– before they are sent to regional facilities for recycling, where the lids are detached.
The bins and lids are then placed into an industrial chipper. The bins are chipped into small chunks and the containers are sent to Rherig plants, where they are cleaned, pelletized and made into new products, a press release from the city said.
“By chipping the bins on site, each truck can carry more material, reducing the number of trips required and lowering overall carbon footprint, said Andrea Deleon, Deputy Director of the Environmental Services Department Waste Reduction Division, said in the release. “Each bin becomes part of a circular process that keeps plastic in use and out of the landfill.”
While some chipped materials are sent to the Rehrig plant, others are being used for other products, including totes, pallets and trays. The City of San Diego said that more than 75% of the old bins are 20 years old and are past their service life.
The new gray trash bins, which are being rolled out to customers through March 2025, include new trash and recycling labels, which make it easier for San Diego residents to identify and sort their trash properly. Additionally, the new bin colors are expected to help drivers with the city’s Environmental Services Department identify which trash containers to service.
These new bins also have a scannable tag to help the City of San Diego track performance, improve service, and even return a bin to its corresponding home if it has been misplaced at someone else’s home.
For more information about the City of San Diego’s trash service, click here.