Dive Brief:
- The state of Arkansas connected a review of its recycling and determined the recycling rate increased to 39%, to 1,086, 820 tons of materials recycled.
- A report from the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) determined the 4% increase occurred due to new markets for glass.
- 3,265,463 tons of materials went into landfills in 2014, a decease of 5% from the year before. The volume of waste generated grew to 5,352,283 tons produced in 2014.
Dive Insight:
Glass recycling increased by 166% in 2014; a total of 9,352 tons of glass was recycled in 2014, up from 3,513 tons the year before.
Robert Hunter, the recycling and marketing manager for ADEQ told Resource Recycling that the significant growth of glass was due to the material being accepted in curbside recycling collections.
1,494,092 tons of metal were recycling this year, up 20% from 2013, while the volume of paper recycled increased by 27%, to 239,777 tons. Cardboard, consumer and paper board materials were all recycled in greater numbers this year. Plastic was the only material to experience a decrease in 2014.
This information could prove useful to another state - Ohio. The Buckeye State has seen its glass recycling rate hover at low levels, prompting the introduction of pilot programs to boost its rate. The state added drop-off centers and began trucking in glass from other states to keep up with its unsustainable demand for glass. An estimated 90% of glass in Ohio ends up in the landfill.