RECYCLING DATA

Waste Summary bar graph displaying Material Landfilled, Landfill imports, and Recycled Material by pound in 2017 - 2020

Source: Michigan EGLE Part 175 Annual Reports 2017-2020, EGLE Solid Waste Landfill Report 2022

Pie chart displaying percentages of Solid Waste Disposal by Type including residential, industrial, construction and demolition, ADC, and Other waste.

Source: Michigan EGLE Solid Waste Landfill Report 2022

Graphic displaying access, facilities, tons recycled per year, jobs, economic output and greenhouse gas emissions at our present and at a 45% recycling rate

Source: Next Cycle Gap Analysis 2021

RECYCLING
Recycling is a series of activities that includes collecting recyclable materials that would otherwise be considered waste, sorting and processing recyclables into raw materials, and manufacturing raw materials into new products.
US EPA

COMPOSTING
Compost is the product resulting from the controlled biological decomposition of organic material that has been sanitized through the generation of heat and processed to further reduce pathogens and stabilized to the point that it is beneficial to plant growth.
United States Composting Council

ANAEROBIC DIGESTION
Anaerobic Digestion (AD) is a biological process similar in many ways to composting. It is a natural treatment process in which bacteria break down organic matter and reduce its bulk or “mass.” AD is carried out in an oxygen-free environment (known as anaerobic conditions) to allow the presence of bacteria adjusted to these conditions, which then multiply and grow; by so doing, it is possible to achieve sanitation of the feed material and of any liquid being discharged; a net positive surplus generation of energy as a biofuel to allow power production from methane gas (biogas) produced by the organisms.
Anaerobic Digestion.com

LANDFILL
A landfill is a waste management site for solid waste and hazardous waste that sequesters garbage while protecting the environment from contaminants. Landfills are regulated both under federal regulation and state regulation as either solid waste landfills under Subtitle D of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) or Subtitle C of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). These regulations govern the location, design, operation and closure of landfill yo ensure the facility has been properly engineered to protect surrounding natural resources and human health.

Some landfills recapture methane and carbon dioxide gasses released from decomposing organic matter to create energy through landfill gas recapture. This both creates a source of energy and mitigates the harm of greenhouse gas pollution.

See here a list of Landfill prohibited materials and proper disposal methods from Michigan EGLE.