21st Century Recycling Comes to Lower Manhattan

Whether you are visiting, working, or living in Lower Manhattan, now you can recycle in style.

Starting this month, a new high-tech recycling bin is being piloted at Whitehall Plaza on Water and Whitehall streets. The Renew Recycling Bin, which doubles as a communication pod and recycling point, receives recyclable paper and magazines in a safe and beautifully designed facility that is manufactured, installed and operated at no cost to the city.

A complete network of these pods can be found in the City of London, where Media Metrica Ltd., Renew’s creator, was awarded a 21-year contract to tackle the problem of public space recycling. The sleek recycling pods broadcast live, dynamic information ranging from weather reports to stock market results on street-facing, high-definition, LCD screens.  The pods also provide City Officials with additional channels of communication for traffic, transit, weather, and safety alerts.

New York City’s pilot pod has fixed screens with a local wayfinding map or iconic Lower Manhattan imagery.

“As a 21st century, global business district, it is only fitting that Lower Manhattan is now home to the first 21st century recycling bin in the United States,” says Joseph Timpone, Senior Vice President of Operations for the Alliance for Downtown New York.

“The Renew Recycling Pod is a radical departure in how public space recycling could be imagined,” said Jason Ornstein, Executive Vice President of Media Metric Ltd. “Our pilot will give New Yorkers an opportunity to see how public information and recycling are merged in London.”