Municipal waste management is an essential job, but it comes with its fair share of risks. With that in mind, the Zero Waste Advisory Commission asked Austin Resource Recovery Department management Wednesday to study and consider ways to improve safety conditions and offer hazard pay to front-line employees. Austin Resource Recovery Director Bob Gedert told […]
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 inParks
Open-space recycling a challenge to city, says staff
Austin’s recycling requirements are ambitious, but they don’t cover one major area — open spaces. Now, the city is taking steps to make up for it. The Austin Resource Recovery Department recently performed an assessment on Parks and Recreation Department recycling efforts, and both are considering a plan to provide these services at city parks, […]
Posted inEnvironment
Plastic bag ban working to an extent, says report
Austin’s single-use bag ordinance is helping residents reduce overall consumption by about 197 million single-use bags per year, but it has had unintended consequences including an increase in the number of thicker reusable bags in the recycling stream. That’s according to a report that Austin Resource Recovery Department Research Associate Aaron Waters presented to the […]
Posted inEnvironment, Resources
Almost half of Austin curbside trash recyclable
Despite the city’s ambitious goal to achieve zero waste by 2040, many Austin residents are sending items to landfills that they could be putting into the city’s blue recycling bins. Austin Resource Recovery Department Director Robert Gedert told members of the Zero Waste Advisory Commission on Wednesday that, according to a recent study, about 44 […]
Posted inCity Hall, Environment, Local Politics, Resources, Texas State Legislature
City orders study on bag ban that state may toss
Amid concerns that state leadership will take steps to limit city ordinances such as Austin’s plastic bag ban, the Zero Waste Advisory Commission has instructed city staff to study the ban in time to send the results to the state legislature. The commission unanimously passed a resolution Wednesday requesting that the Austin Resource Recovery Department […]
Posted inAustin, Environment
Plan for local recycled product market advances
Austin’s processed recyclable materials are often shipped overseas to be remanufactured into new products, but a plan by the Austin Resource Recovery Department to convert a plot of land into an eco-industrial park called the Austin (re) Manufacturing Hub could change that. The Zoning and Platting Commission enthusiastically approved a request Tuesday to rezone 391 […]
Posted inEnvironment, Resources
Materials Marketplace boosts Zero Waste plan
City officials are touting a new initiative they say will move Austin toward its Zero Waste goals while helping businesses along the way. The Austin Materials Marketplace is a business-to-business material reuse program. Basically, the initiative created an online database that connects businesses looking to discard unwanted materials with other businesses that could use those […]
Posted inLocal Politics, Resources
Council postpones action on hauler ordinance
Following complaints from stakeholders, City Council voted on Thursday to postpone action on a measure known as the “hauler ordinance,” which would amend city code regarding the private solid waste collection program. It also postponed action on amendments to administrative rules associated with that code. Council will reconsider the issue at its Nov. 6 meeting […]
Posted inResources
Austin Resource Recovery doubles efforts to collect compostables
The city’s Resource Recovery Department continues its push toward its goal of Zero Waste by 2040 by doubling its current program to test curbside compost collection. Officially calling it the Curbside Organics Collection Pilot, city officials are hoping they can convince residents in selected neighborhoods to put their food scraps, yard waste and unrecyclable paper […]
Posted inDevelopment, Local Politics
Council members discuss plan to put dog park in industrial area
The City Council discussed and postponed action Thursday on what could be a controversial new dog park located in an industrial complex in southeast Austin. The proposed park, located off Winnebago Lane in the Missouri-Pacific Industrial Complex, would be, as of now, void of any pedestrian access and only accessible by driving through the industrial […]