LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — The Venetian Resort expands Sands ECO360 recycling efforts as the first Las Vegas-based property to develop an innovative program to recycle surgical face masks, which are being used by guests and Team Members as part of the resort’s Venetian Clean initiatives.   As part of this pilot project, in partnership with TerraCycle, the discarded masks are collected on-site at The Venetian Resort and sent to a recycling facility where they are separated, shredded, and densified into a crumb-like raw material.   This material will be used to make repurposed products such as composite lumber for shipping pallets, railroad ties and composite decking.   Since re-opening in June, The Venetian Resort began diverting discarded surgical face masks from other waste being sent to landfills, through an industry-leading trash-sorting initiative that takes place on property.   In addition to this program, the resort actively sorts its trash, diverting 27 types of items that would otherwise be sent to landfills. Through this program, between 55-60 percent of waste is diverted from local landfills, a number that far surpasses the national average of 32%, or the state average of 23%.   This project, part of the company’s Sands ECO360 initiative, will help provide “proof of concept” for such recycling, to encourage others to replicate the program. Currently, consumer masks are not recycled through main-stream or curbside recycling programs, due to the complexity of the recycling process.   Surgical face masks are made of a multitude of materials, and need to be sorted and separated before recycling.   In addition, a magnet is used to separate the metal nose strips, which can melted and utilized in other recycled materials.