Community needs to improve recycling practices

From a young age, we learn the importance and benefit of recycling. 

However, according to the Recycling Task Force Report established by Sioux Falls’ sustainability department in September 2023, there has been a steady decrease in recycling in the area, from a record high of 23.4% in 2018 to 18.7% in 2022.

Information presented in the report was collected from individual waste haulers over the course of one year to understand why recycling rates have declined in the Sioux Falls community and to find ways to promote the practice.

Research findings highlighted numerous reasons for this consistent drop in recycled materials. Consumer behavior, multi-family housing growth, lack of commercial participation, increase in recyclables entering the landfill, hauler practices, changes in packaging and the impact of the pandemic have all heavily affected recycling rates in negative ways. 

A need for more education and changes in plastic-bag recycling are two areas that facilities such as Augustana could focus on.

Holly Meier, coordinator of sustainability for the City of Sioux Falls, addressed the issue of materials thrown into recycling bins still inside plastic bags. 

“In the bins that are in buildings or on the sidewalks, you can still have bags in there but they cannot end up in bags when they go to the dumpster,” Meier said. “Some facilities end up bagging their recyclables for ease and transportation.”

Augustana is one such facility that puts bags in recycling containers throughout campus. Bagging recycled material is more convenient for custodial staff to dispose of these items into recycling dumpsters. 

However, Custodial Manager Jim Tirrel said custodians take the bags out of the dumpster once they recycle the material. Tirrel said he believes the biggest recycling challenge the Augustana community faces is the issue of contamination, mainly due to liquids. 

“The problem that we are running into is that as we take our recycling out and dump it out of the trash bags, a lot of things like cardboard and paper are getting soaking wet,” Tirrel said. “The paper material is where the real challenge is because as you dump that into the recycling dumpster, the stuff that’s getting wet isn’t going to be recycled.” 

Although natural elements such as rain and snow cause these materials to get wet when the custodial staff take out the recycling, liquids from cups, bottles and food are the main culprit. This liquid contamination can cause the whole container to become unrecyclable. 

“If the contamination gets so bad, it becomes cost prohibitive to be recycled at that point,” Meier said. “It becomes so contaminated that it is not able to be sorted out. It ultimately goes to the landfill. That is one of the biggest things we see at campuses and other big sites.”

Meier said she believes the best way to mitigate this issue is to increase the knowledge of what can and cannot be recycled. The Recycling Task Force Final Report stresses a need for more signage next to recycling bins. 

The Sioux Falls Sustainability Department has made goals to improve and expand education, outreach and communication by continuing to promote recycling through marketing campaigns, social media, flyers and stickers, address specific issues within facilities and collaborate with businesses to create educational presentations.

Tirrel said he believes more creative and impactful signs emphasizing the importance of not tossing liquids into recycling containers would help reduce the issue of contamination. 

Overall, both Meier and Tirrel said they see positive sustainability and recycling practices in the Augustana community. 

“The Augustana community does a great job recycling,” Tirrel said. “I think they are very well aware, and they do a great job recognizing it.” 

Next time you are about to recycle your coffee cup or food container, rinse and pour them out. Let’s take our environmentally friendly practices a step further and use our awareness to boost the sustainability of the Sioux Falls community, one empty recycled container at a time.