Republic Services to open plastics recycling facility in Allentown
Plastic Recycling | 2026-07-07 08:28:50
Republic Services is building a plastic recycling polymer center in Allentown, Pennsylvania, with operations set for early 2027 and more than 70 permanent jobs.
By Paul Ploumis
SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): Republic Services is constructing a polymer processing center in Allentown that will handle plastic recycling for its Northeast region, with operations expected to begin in early 2027.
The facility under construction at 420 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive will be the company’s third polymer center in the United States. Republic Services currently operates similar facilities in Las Vegas and Indianapolis.
The company says its Republic Polymer III in Allentown will generate over 70 permanent, high-skilled manufacturing positions, helping to drive both economic growth and environmental sustainability.
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection announced June 26 an air quality permit was issued for the project, following an expedited review through the state’s Streamlining Permits for Economic Expansion and Development (SPEED) program.
This center is designed to address persistent challenges in plastic recycling, where recovery rates remain low and much recycled material ends up in products that cannot be recycled again. The facility will process plastics collected from curbside recycling programs and transform them into material that can be reused in consumer packaging.
The polymer center will handle the complete recycling chain, from curbside collection through delivery of finished recycled material. The process begins when plastic items are placed in residential recycling carts, then transported to a Republic Services recycling facility where materials are sorted and compressed into bales.
Workers then deliver those bales to the polymer center, where PET plastics are shredded and hot-washed to produce recycled PET flakes. Manufacturers can use these flakes to create new consumer packaging.
According to Republic Services, the process allows a single water bottle to be recycled into new bottles up to six times.
The expansion comes as demand for recycled materials increases, driven by consumer preferences, corporate sustainability commitments and new regulatory requirements.
In issuing the air permit, the DEP noted it processed Republic Services’ application in 83 days, compared to the typical regional average of 150 days.
DEP Secretary Jessica Shirley said the review helps to “create jobs in the Lehigh Valley, without sacrificing environmental protections.”
Pennsylvania launched the SPEED program in June 2025, initially focusing on stormwater management permits. The program has since expanded to include certain air quality approvals, dam safety and water obstruction permits.
DEP said it continues to modernize its permitting process by investing in technology and identifying bottlenecks to improve efficiency.
Courtesy: www.lehighvalleylive.com
