Big fix pitched for Northwest Arkansas recycling
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Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios
Northwest Arkansas is a bit trashy — its more than 20 incorporated municipalities use different recycling programs with varying results. But a new report charts a path to 25% higher participation by 2030.
Why it matters: A unified system could ease dependence on Tontitown's Eco‑Vista landfill where 117,000 tons of recyclable materials end up each year, according to Charlotte Pitt, a researcher on the report by The Recycling Partnership.
The big picture: The landfill takes about 600,000 tons of waste annually and could reach capacity in 10-15 years with the region's population projected to reach nearly 1 million by 2045.
State of play: Pitt, vice president of community development for the national nonprofit advocacy group, spent a year interviewing stakeholders and reviewing data.
What they found: The report, titled as a roadmap, says only 52% of NWA's residents are satisfied with their recycling service, compared to 74% nationally.
- The region's sole working recycling center handles 20,000 tons annually — half its capacity.
- The report outlines how NWA can increase recycling participation and tons collected by 25% each by 2030.
What they recommend: The roadmap's first priority is to increase household participation by making it easier to recycle in communities with roller bin curbside pickup, standardized regional processing contracts and a regionwide education campaign.
- Fayetteville's City Council earlier this week voted to move to a single-container, cart-based system.
It also recommends boosting processing capacity at regional facilities through upgrades and public-private partnerships to build more infrastructure, and building regional coordination like a new waste authority or formalized district partnership.
Yes, but: Success depends on political buy-in, collaboration, collection of good data and a financial commitment.
Follow the money: The region spends a combined $26 million each year on recycling, according to the report.
- Meeting the 25% goal will cost another $27 million by 2030.
What they're saying: "I would tell you that we've never been in a better position to actually move the needle and solve this issue for Northwest Arkansas than today," Rogers Mayor Greg Hines told Axios.
The bottom line: Every city has a different approach and recycles differently, so regionalized, collaborative messaging to residents of all cities is a must-have, he said.
- "You can't go spend $6 million or $8 million building a [material recovery facility] and still have fractured messages," Hines said.
- "So if we can't get this right, then we just need to keep our hand on our wallets and … keep being hopeful going down the road."