Changes in Recycling Services in Modiin - Orange Bin Replacing Brown Bin

Modiin Maccabim Reut Municipality, in co-operation with Tamir Recycling Corporation, has been placing orange recycling containers in garbage cellars throughout the city since October 2021.

What can be put in the orange bin?

The orange bin is intended for recyclable packaging, of the following types:

• Plastic: food packaging of all kinds*, packaging of cleaning and care products (e.g - fabric conditioner, shampoo etc...), plastic bags. *Please note: only plastic drink bottles (big and small) are not to be thrown into the orange bin, these have to be returned now to supermarkets accrding to the Pikdon HaBakbukim law.

• Metal: sprays, cans/tins, metal boxes.

• Beverage cartons: milk cartons, juice cartons and more.

Please note! Packaging should be emptied of its contents. It is not necessary to wash it.

What's NOT allowed to put in the orange bins

• Large cardboard boxes
• Glass and glass packaging
• Paper, paper packaging and newspapers
• Disposable dishes
• Plastic drink bottles (these have to be returned now to supermarkets accrding to the Pikdon HaBakbukim law).
• Broken objects and toys
• Pruning and gardening scraps and organic waste.
• Building debris and garden equipment

What can be put in each of the other bins

• Purple bin: glass bottles, jars and glass packaging.

• Blue bin: newspapers, paper packaging, and thin cardboard.

• Green bin: disposable utensils, broken objects and toys, food scraps and hygiene products.

Thick cardboard packaging needs to be thrown in a special cardboard collection point - to find the closest to you, click here!

Where does the packaging collected in the orange bins go?

The contents of the orange bins are transported to a sorting station in Rishon Lezion, and are then separated according to the type of material from which they are made.

The packaging is separated into 7 different categories, 4 of which are technologically sorted without human contact.

After being separated, each material is bundled into large blocks made of the same material and from there they are directed to recycling plants, most of them in Israel, for the benefit of Israeli industry.

For more informations: click here for the Q&A page on the municipality's website

What about organic waste and what happened to the brown bins?

During 2020, the brown bins used for organic waste were removed - since the RDF plant where the waste from Modiin is processed uses an innovative (non-human contact) sorting process, which separates all types of waste, including the organic waste, which is transferred to composting plants at the end of the process. This removes the need for brown bins.

What happens to the organic waste and how is the sorting carried out

The RDF plant, which is the pioneer in Israel and one of the largest in the world, turns waste into a resource.

The sorting is done without human contact, using mechanical and optical technology, so that:

• Recyclable products (for example paper, cardboard, metals) and organic waste - are separated and shipped to complementary processing plants.

• The dry leftovers (mainly plastics, as well as wood and textiles) - are sorted, shredded and sent as an alternative fuel to the Nesher factory in Ramla, which is one of the largest energy consumers in the country. This fuel is called RDF and it replaces the fuel that comes from oil.

At the end of the sorting process, the waste is transferred by type to various destinations:

• Recyclable waste (4%-6%) is sold to various recycling plants around the country.

• Organic waste (20%-30%) is transferred to composting plants.

• The remaining dry waste (25%-30%) is transported to a shredder facility, where it is cut into particles of 15-25 mm in diameter and transported by truck to the Nesher plant in Ramla.

In accordance with these changes and as part of the process of introducing the orange bins, the brown bin is no longer needed.

For more details on the municipality's website click here!

For more details on the Hiriya website - which describes exactly how the process works, and also offer the option to co-ordinate guided tours - click here!