A Sustainable Success Story: Juno® Technology’s Impact on Resource Recovery
August 22, 2023
Think about the constant stream of waste that we as a society add to landfills every day. Juno LLC offers a new technology that can be part of the solution and provide your community with an alternative to landfills. From our early desire to recycle fast food paper cups to expanding our scope and operating a commercial-scale facility for over two years, it’s Juno’s passion that guides our team to help make a positive change in your communities. Our milestones and challenges remind us of the progress we’ve made towards creating sustainable resource recovery. We are proud of our story and what we have accomplished so far, and here are a few reasons why.
Passion Meets Purpose
Today, the need for waste management solutions is more urgent than ever. With over 2 billion tons of waste generated annually and The World Bank projections estimating it to grow to 3.5 billion tons by 2050, it’s in this context that Juno’s story begins. Juno recognized the enormous potential to recover resources and divert them from landfills. So, in 2011, Juno achieved its first success by processing small batches of used paper cups from restaurants in the surrounding Green Bay area. In repurposing the paper fibers, the team discovered that it was indeed possible to transform materials destined for landfills into valuable commodities once again.
However, like most things, there were challenges to overcome. It wasn’t long before Juno realized the supply chain difficulties of collecting only paper cups, so Juno broadened its efforts to gather more waste from more places to capture additional fiber sources. This effort laid the groundwork for us and opened a new door of thinking for Juno’s next phase of innovative resource recovery in treating a larger range of waste.
Fostering Innovation
Over the next few years, Juno spent time reimagining the possibilities of resource recovery in the hopes of standing apart from other conventional waste management practices. By leveraging recycling principles from the papermaking industry and applying them to municipal solid waste streams, Juno developed a groundbreaking waste management system that challenged the status quo and offered a more sustainable alternative to waste disposal. With this new innovative solution, the goal became to prove how effective Juno Technology is and how it can fit seamlessly into the current waste and recycling landscape while generating a positive, sustainable impact.
In 2013, a pilot facility was built in Savannah, Georgia, and proved itself to be a steppingstone in demonstrating Juno’s waste processing capabilities and showcasing the potential for scalable, larger operations. The pilot 6-ton capacity Juno waste processing system was a success, processing hundreds of batches of waste from airports, restaurants, office buildings, and amusement parks. It revealed tangible evidence of Juno’s potential and effectiveness in reducing waste, conserving resources, and driving positive change. So, logically, the next step was to scale up operations, focusing not only on commercial but also residential waste.
The Juno Impact in Oregon
Soon, construction was underway for a commercial-scale Juno site with a processing capability of 70,000 tons per year in Toledo, Oregon. The Juno facility began sourcing waste from both residential and commercial sources, significantly increasing the amount of waste diverted in the region. In its first year of operation, Juno has almost tripled the landfill diversion rate in Toledo. Future installations will be capable of processing 300,000 metric tons of waste per year using additional sorting equipment and the ability to capture biogas, driving the potential diversion rate to 90 percent of the waste processed.
The facility also recently began processing waste from King County(Seattle metro area), Washington, as the municipality explored opportunities to divert waste from landfills. Along with other established curbside recycling programs, Juno contributed to the additional recovery of 60–70% of recyclable material from King County’s residual waste, according to a county press release.
In the fall of 2022, Juno was also recognized for its contributions to sustainability and recycling innovation with awards from the American Forest and Paper Association, Portland Business Journal, and Engineering News-Record. Operating for over two years now, the Oregon facility is driving substantial positive sustainability changes for Toledo, Oregon, and exemplifying the potential of Juno for resource recovery.
Shaping the Future of Waste Diversion and Recovery
With demonstrated results, we are now ready to introduce Juno in more communities to extend the benefits of resource recovery. Our teams aim to implement Juno Technology in numerous new facilities around the globe and replicate the meaningful results we have observed in Oregon. By reinforcing the simplicity and effectiveness of Juno, we hope to see the technology adopted by regional and international communities that are looking to increase their recycling and recovery rates. From the very start, we’ve known that Juno has the capabilities for a better way to recycle and can drive a real positive change in waste management, and we’re just getting started.
Sources
Cision PR Newswire
GP Juno
Roadrunner
Re+ Strategic Plan
Recycling Today
The World Bank