What We Do

The Kent County Department of Public Works operates a Materials Recovery Facility that sorts recycling from curbside bins and drop-off recycling centers and prepares it to be sold to processors and brokers.

The new Kent County Recycling & Education Center will open in the summer of 2010 and will drastically change the way recyclables are processed in Kent County. The new facility, designed for 'single stream recycling', will allow recyclers to mix their paper, plastic bottles, glass jars and metal cans together. Changes in technology and more working space in the new facility will enable more recyclables to be sorted in a shorter amount of time. The new Kent County Recycling & Education Center will:

  • sort through 18 tons of mixed recyclables per hour (compared to just 4-6 tons per hour currently sorted)
  • operate 6 hours per day (instead of the current 13 hour shifts)
  • sort 108 tons of recyclables per day (compared to 40-50 tons per day currently sorted)

    The Department also has staff that promote recycling and activities that minimize waste. This program is called "Resource Recovery" and the staff work to educate residents about recycling, offer resources that will assist residents in recycling and promote other waste reduction activities. These staff members also provide tours at the Recycling & Education Center and other solid waste facilities operated by the Kent County Department of Public Works.

    For information on all the services provided by the Kent County Department of Public Works, visit us at www.accesskent.com/waste.