Tours
Tours are fundamental to MassRecycle’s mission to inform individuals about the intricacies of recycling and materials processing. Each month, weather permitting, we organize tours that offer an immersive journey through a diverse range of facilities that are not normally open to the public. These visits encompass Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs), secondary processors, creative reuse centers, waste-to-energy facilities, transfer stations, and landfills.
By providing firsthand experiences, we aim to demystify the processes involved in waste management and foster a deeper understanding of the journey that our materials undertake. Our meticulously curated tours serve as a window into the inner workings of these facilities, shedding light on their vital role in the recycling ecosystem.
Join us on these enlightening excursions and witness firsthand the remarkable efforts and innovative technologies that propel the sustainable management of resources in Massachusetts.
We are open to suggestions for tour locations, and if you have a business or facility that you would like to offer for a tour, please email Jess Wozniak with your tour suggestions.
Boston Area Gleaners October 2021 Tour
Boston Area Gleaners hosted a MassRecycle tour of their new home at Stonefield Farm in Acton on a beautiful October afternoon. Outreach Coordinator Paul Franceschi and Inventory Coordinator Marissa Gabriel led us on a walk through their 51-acre campus. BAG’s operations area includes a large warehouse, refrigerated containers and a new loading dock, with space for their growing fleet of trucks. Usha Thakrar, Executive Director, mentioned that BAG is working with Eversource to upgrade the farm’s electrical service to enable plug-in powered cooling instead using diesel when the trucks are idle. Paul and the team explained how BAG’s 20+ staff and volunteer network of over 500 volunteers helps local farms to recover unharvested produce, which can represent up to 30% of the crops grown. Volunteers also break down large pallets and gaylords of food into smaller bags and boxes for distribution to the many hunger relief partner organizations large and small, such as Greater Boston Food Bank, community suppers and food pantries. Finally, we walked out to a cabbage field where a merry band of volunteers were picking cabbages. “One of the great things about cabbages is that they stay fresh for a long time,” Marissa said. Bag welcomes volunteers to help them with their mission to prevent farm crop waste and relieve hunger. Please contact Paul if you are interested in helping out, whether in Acton or at one of their local farm partners: Paul Franceschi, outreach@bostonareagleaners.org
