NYC Household Recycling Rate Surged Significantly in 2017

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): According to new 2017 Waste Characterization Study conducted by the New York Department of Sanitation (DSNY), average NYC household generated around 1,990 pounds of waste in 2017. This is significantly lower when compared with the level of 2,280 pounds recorded in 2015 and nearly 2,000 pounds in 2013. The 2017 figures are based on studies carried out by MSW Consultants and Cascadia Consulting on behalf of the Department of Sanitation.

DNSY’s residential collection totaled 3.1 million tons of materials, out of which 2.5 million tons ended up in landfills or WTE facilities. Kathryn Garcia, Commissioner, DSNY noted that the 2017 data indicates that the City’s efforts to reduce, reuse and recycle waste are working in the right direction. The report also suggests that the City is still left with incredible opportunities to develop and grow programs to achieve more, she added. Incidentally, NYC aims to send zero-waste to landfills by 2030.

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According to the study, participation in e-waste recycling program has witnessed tremendous increase over the past few years. E-waste has declined by almost two-thirds during the past four years and now makes up only 0.3% of what New Yorkers throw away. The number of discarded televisions has dropped to 0.4 pounds in 2017, as against 5.1 pounds in 2013. This achievement is mainly on account of the legislation prohibiting disposal of e-waste in curbside refuse collections and radical changes in product design.

The average household recycling rate of cardboard and metal too have shown significant improvement in 2017. Average NYC home recycled 174 pounds of paper in 2017 as compared with 171.5 pounds in 2013. The average recycling rate of metal too has increased from 101 pounds in 2013 to 144 pounds in 2017.