As cases of Covid-19 continue to spread through the community, it becomes more onerous for many essential workers to do their jobs, including those who provide trash, recycling and compost collection services. As the twice-yearly curbside collection of bulk items and large brush and trees has proven to be too burdensome this summer, Austin Resource Recovery is […]
Austin Resource Recovery
Formerly Solid Waste Services. The department in charge of handling solid waste disposal, recycling, and curbside composting for the City of Austin.
Posted inEnvironment
City departments propose centralized trash cleanup effort to keep creeks clean
The city has taken a first look at trash in creeks and identified illegal dumping, littering, large public events and homeless encampments as the four primary sources of trash ending up in city waterways. In a cross-departmental background report posted last week, the city found commercial locations and illegal dumping to be the most consistent […]
Posted inResources
City’s waste collection problem solved
According to a memo from Deputy Procurement Officer Shawn Willett, the city of Austin now has three short-term contracts for the disposal of refuse, recycling, brush and compostable materials. The city’s procurement team and members of Austin Resource Recovery scrambled last week to find contractors who would be willing to provide waste collection services on […]
Posted inResources
Affordability may mean dealing honestly with trash
Austin’s growth is putting a strain on the city’s waste collection service provider, Austin Resource Recovery, as it struggles to keep costs down for customers. Results of the Residential Solid Waste Affordability Study, presented to the Zero Waste Advisory Committee at its November 2018 meeting, indicate that Austin residents are receiving more disposal and recycling […]
Posted inAustin
City taps UT incubator to meet 2040 zero waste goal
The city and the Austin Technology Incubator at the University of Texas are turning to startup companies to help find a solution to dramatically reduce waste headed to landfills from Austin. ATI’s new Circular Economy Incubator, which launched last month, has a handful of enrolled startups and is seeking more by offering investment, mentoring and […]
Posted inCity Hall
At long last, Council approves biosolids contract
On Thursday, City Council put an end to two and a half years of squabbling over a lucrative contract to manage biosolid waste generated by the city water utility. Council voted 10-1 to award the contract to Synagro of Texas-CDR Inc., which has been providing the service to the city for years. The contract is […]
Posted inUncategorized
Task force talks trash – and cash for recycling at all Austin parks and facilities
This story was mistakenly re-published in October, 2019. It was originally published in 2018. The Parks and Recreation Recycling Task Force is recommending several different ways to pay for consistent recycling around Austin. City Council approved the task force in June to support the city’s Zero Waste Plan. The plan, passed in 2009, aims to […]
Posted inAustin
With plastic bag ban in the trash, Austin pushes campaign on reducing waste
Austin says it is still committed to reducing plastic waste despite a Texas Supreme Court ruling last month that forced it to end its ban on single-use plastic bags. The city says it’s continuing efforts toward its Zero Waste goal, a plan by the City Council to keep 90 percent of discarded materials out of […]
Posted inResources
Landfill fix on hold for now
Landfills exist comfortably outside of the public eye until something happens that reminds everyone that their upkeep is a critical component to keep our city functioning. On April 11, Tony Davee, a project manager with Austin Resource Recovery, came to the Zero Waste Advisory Commission asking for some attention for the Travis County landfill on […]
Posted inResources
Dumpster contract headed to Council, hung up on lobbying ordinance rewrite
As City Council continues to debate the policies associated with the anti-lobbying ordinance, Austin solid waste contracts are beginning to expire with very little recourse for renewals. The latest casualty is city-owned facilities’ dumpster collection services. On Feb. 14, Austin Resource Recovery asked the Zero Waste Advisory Commission for a $1,511,385 increase on its existing […]
Posted inResources
Once again, Austin’s landfill criteria is back in discussion
Nobody wants their backyard to become a landfill. For nearly a year, Austin Resource Recovery has been redesigning the landfill criteria matrix that refuse companies will have to abide by going forward. Problem is, it seems that staff is caught in the crossfire between ratepayers and waste companies and nobody can come to a consensus. […]
Posted inResources
Troxclair wants to know how rates compare to other Texas utilities
This year, the average Austinite will spend $2,475 on utility bills to cover the cost of electricity, water and garbage pickup. City Council Member Ellen Troxclair wants to know how that compares to what other people served by other utilities in Texas pay. A resolution Troxclair plans to introduce today asks city staff to conduct […]