Materials Recovery Facility

About

The Town’s Materials Recovery Facility or MRF (pronounced “Murf”) initially opened in 1991 allowing residents in the Town of Brookhaven to recycle. Operated by Winters Bros. Waste Systems, the MRF processes recyclables before they are sold to manufacturers. Since its opening, there have been many advancements and improvements which have made the processing of recyclables more efficient.

Tours

We encourage interested school and Scout groups to come see what happens to their recyclables. To set up a tour, please contact the Town’s Recycling Coordination Aide by clicking here or by calling 631-451-8696.

1. All tours must be booked at least 2 weeks in advance
2. Tours are usually limited to 20 people
3. Tours are usually given on Monday to Thursday 7:00 am to 2:00 pm and Friday 7:00 am to 11:00 am

Please note that our facility uses the same sorting equipment to process both fiber (paper and cardboard) and commingled containers (metal and plastic) recycling. Our system typically switches between fiber and containers streams on Wednesdays; therefore, we do not sort both streams every day. If you would like to see a specific recycling stream being sorted, please notify us during scheduling.

Location

The MRF is located at the Town’s landfill complex at 350 Horseblock Rd, Brookhaven, NY 11719. When you arrive, proceed to the information booth next to the scale for further directions.

Reservations

When you make your reservation, please provide the following information:

• Name of Group
• Date of the Tour 
• Time of the Tour
• Contact Person
• Contact Phone Number
• Contact E-mail
• Number of people in the tour
• Number of adults
• Number of children
• Any special needs?
• Reason for the tour?

Safety is Our Number 1 Priority

Safety is our number one priority.  The Brookhaven Materials Recovery Facility is an operating recycling plant and can be dangerous if you don’t follow the rules:

• All members of a tour group must have appropriate adult supervision.  
• All members of a tour group will be issued Personal Protective Equipment and will be required to wear the Personal Protective Equipment during the tour.  
• All members of a tour group must wear long pants and closed-toe shoes (no sandals or flip flops).  
• All tour group members must stay with the group and listen to and obey the instructions of the tour guide.
• Most of the sorting takes place on the second floor. Guests must be able to climb one flight of stairs (there is no elevator). If this is an issue, please notify us and we can make proper accommodations.

What You'll See

Our state-of-the-art recycling facility was upgraded in 2020 after a multi-million dollar investment by Winters Bros. The new recycling system is the largest and most technologically advanced on Long Island. 

After your recyclables are collected, they are taken to the Brookhaven MRF to be screened, separated, and prepared for recycling – that is, to be used again as raw material. A combination of mechanical, optical, and manual sorters is utilized to separate recyclables. The new system can process up to 38 tons per hour of paper and cardboard recyclables, and ten tons per hour of plastic and metal recyclables.

Additionally, please understand that this is an industrial facility and the materials that come into the facility can be unpredictable in nature. The facility does occasionally have to shut down for unexpected maintenance. In the event the equipment is not likely to be operating during the tour, your tour guide will contact you. We can provide a virtual tour, and still show the equipment while it is not operating. Rescheduling options will be discussed if necessary.

What Can I Recycle?

The Brookhaven MRF processes the following materials acceptable in the Town’s recycling program:

   Paper and Cardboard

• Newspapers
• Office Paper
• Paper Bags
• Junk Mail
• Envelopes
• Cardboard
• Paperboard (cereal/tissue boxes)

Plastic and Metal

• Rigid Plastic #1, #2, & #5 i.e.. water bottles, milk jugs, detergent bottles, yogurt tubs
• Aluminum Cans (i.e.. soda cans)
• Metal/Tin/Steel Cans (i.e.. soup cans)