Environmental Economics
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I was very impress with the tour to Sims Recycling Center.
The information that was provided was very informative and encouraging. The knowledge and understanding I gain from the Sims Recycling Center is something I will try to practice in my daily activities to help the environment as a whole. I was most impress by construction of the three artificial reefs to create intertidal habitat for marine and bird life.
SUNSET PARK MATERIAL RECOVERY FACILITY
SIMS MUNICIPAL RECICLING
SIMS RECYCLING SOLUTIONS
SIMS METAL MANAGEMENT
At first the idea of visiting a recycling trash center did not inspire any emotion. I could only think of the nauseating smell of garbage and I was rejecting it. I keep recognizing it was very interesting and I also imagine appointments are created when odor levels are low like the day we visited. Then on 472 Second Avenue in Sunset Park, Brooklyn , NY 11232 we find SIMS (The largest metal and electronics recycler in the world based in Australia), which is a municipal place for specific recycling of plastics, glasses, and metals. The plant began this year accepting ½ of NYC’s papers too. The recycling company is associated with the state of NY to work down a contract for about 20 years, and not only is doing the hard job of created a green development in the zone, also has 85 people working in the plant over the different shifts. SIMS is open to students of all ages and the general public to create consciousness of the importance of recycling waste and saving energy. Then on October 8, 2014, our Environmental Economics class, led by the professor Sean McDonald, we met Eadaoin Quinn the administrative Coordinator who explained to us, in great detail, all the systems and machines employed to separate the load received in the center and how it work. She kindly responded the questions or doubts that rose to us in the course of the conversation. In a short resume, the plastics, glasses and metals are separated by machines but with close supervision of human workers to differentiated products of recycling that do not belong to the materials they are looking for and can be dangers in the process, such as batteries or aerosol cans. After the introduction of a power point we did a walk in the building and saw the place of exhibition very detailed of each materials that will help be recollected and more since the principle how the recycling come in garbage trucks to the end of the process with the materials ready in blocks to be transported and to be reused in different ways. For example de plastic is cutter in little pieces and sorted them. Because the glasses come to the plant broken it are cutter in little pieces too and used to construct streets or in fancy constructions, in metals steel, aluminum, and bronze are very useful. The plant employs solar panels and is in construction of a windmill in order to cause the minimums discomfort to our eco system and looking to help cleaning the water system too, because the plant stays located in a strategic place that permitted shipping the merchandise or final products through boats too. All boroughs have a recycling center in order to help avoid pollution in between long truck trips to get to the centers, and at the same time they are in strategic locations that have good connections between them because not all of the recycling centers are the same materials or have 16 machines working as the Brooklyn center has. I really think this little information like the PowerPoint or a little informative movie should be played on TV, educative centers and a preview in cinemas, people need to be more informed in order the recycling of materials will be in a more effective percent than at the moment.