Road to Zero Waste

By Michael Taylor

Electronics can’t be recycled in your blue recycling cart. When electronics are placed in a blue cart, they often end up in landfills, creating environmental hazards. Electronics contain valuable materials like metals and plastics that can be reused to create new products, but only if recycled properly.  

Correctly recycling electronics makes an impact. Recycling one million cell phones can recover…

By Allison Strupeck

True or false: Disposables are cheaper than reusables.

False! Restaurants that switched from single-use to reuseable service ware consistently saved money for their businesses—according to Upstream, the non-profit authors of “Reuse Wins”.

By investing in certified compostable containers for take out—or ceramic, porcela…

By Jeff Patterson

You probably don’t think much about tossing out leftovers or food that is past its “sell-by” date. Unfortunately, throwing away unconsumed food contributes to a larger collective problem of food waste.  All told, some 1.24 million pounds of food are wasted every day in the Austin area. 

All that squandered food ends up decomposing in landfills and generating methane, a hazardous air pollutant and greenhouse gas.  Climate scientists estimate that nearly 10…

By Michael Taylor

Styrofoam doesn’t go in your blue recycling cart,  and it does not belong in your trash cart or dumpster.  Since it isn’t biodegradable, Styrofoam winds up in landfills and can take hundreds of years to break down.  So where does it go?

You can make an appointment to drop it off at the Recycle and Reuse Drop-off Center. The center is located just south of downtown Austin on Business Center Drive.

At the Recycle and Reuse Drop-off Center, a specialize…

By Michael Taylor

Austin Resource Recovery (ARR) collects the contents of blue, residential recycling carts and hauls them to a local recycling facility, known as a Materials Recovery Facility (MRF). From there, the MRF handles sorting the materials for shipment to an end-user. This relationship between ARR and the MRF means that both have a first-hand account of what is being put into the residential recycling carts to be sorted.

While many Austinites do a great job of putting recyclable items like plastic bottles, cardboa…

By Michael Taylor

20 percent of the material that is collected in Austin’s blue recycling carts can’t be recycled curbside. Contamination occurs when we put non-recyclable materials or trash into our blue recycling carts, which can cause major issues later on at the recycling facility. One of the largest contaminants? “Tanglers

Tanglers are materials that physically cause tangling issues in the recycling process. These include items like plastic bags, trash bags, garden hoses, stri…

By Brianna Linn

The fall season brings festive activities such as pumpkin picking, haunted houses, and trick-or-treating. While this spooky season delights many, it also contributes significantly to landfill waste. Here are some creative ways to enjoy this time of year while minimizing waste:

Spooky zero waste décor

To add a touch of fall to home décor, consider finding or DIYing decorations. Many natural materials are readily available and can spruce up any space without costing money!

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By Allison Strupeck 

If you chose Austin for your apartment or condo, you probably already feel pretty lucky to live in such a unique town with a great vibe. And now the city of Austin is one of the only U.S. cities to ensure multifamily residents can easily compost at home!  

As of October 1, 2024, the City of Austin requires multifamily properties—including apartments, condos, non-state dorms, assisted l…

By Brianna Linn

The City of Austin's Construction and Demolition (C&D) Recycling Ordinance requires general contractors to reuse or recycle construction debris. An efficient recycling program can help save money while meeting the City’s requirements. 

Use these tips to create a successful recycling program at your project site.

Plan ahead

Determine what type(s) of waste the project will generate during each phase. This will help you figure out which processors,…

By Brianna Linn

It's that time of year again when school zone signs flash and teachers and parents get ready for a new school year. As a parent, packing your kid's lunch often includes single-use plastic bags, disposable silverware, wax-coated juice boxes and other hard-to-recycle items that typically end up in the landfill. If you want to reduce that waste this year, here are some easy ways to make your kid's lunch environment friendly.

Box it up Two words: Bento…