Surgical face masks used by guests and staff at The Venetian in Las Vegas will be recycled in a newly launched program. Working with TerraCycle, The Las Vegas Sans. Corp. resort said it’s the first Las Vegas-based property to develop such a program. The masks recycled from The Venetian will be collected, separated, shredded, and turned into a raw material that can be used to make products such as composite lumber for shipping pallet, railroad ties and composite decking. The Venetian has been separating masks from other waste since its reopening on June 4 as part of its Sands ECO360 initiative. Surgical masks are not currently recycled through mainstream or curbside recycling programs because the recycling process is so complex. The masks are composed of various materials that need to be sorted and separated before recycling — including a metal nose strip, which requires a magnet to separate it.