America Recycles Day, now in its 27th year, aims to celebrate and promote innovations and initiatives across the country.

Along with encouraging recycling education and investment, the day is also a time for notable nonprofits, businesses and political groups to share updates and announcements. Here’s a roundup of some of the week’s America Recycles Day news.

Biden touts administration’s recycling efforts in annual proclamation

President Joe Biden marked America Recycles Day by issuing an annual proclamation calling on residents to do their part to recycle, reduce and reuse.

“We show our gratitude for all the people who work hard to make sure we limit our waste and responsibly steward our national resources,” he wrote. 

Biden highlighted his administration’s recycling efforts funded through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and the Inflation Reduction Act, touted a federal goal to phase out federal procurement of single-use plastics by 2035 and celebrated issuing the country’s first National Strategy for Reducing Food Loss and Waste to improve organics circularity and coordinate among agencies. He tied this work to his administration’s overarching goal to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

Biden also noted that recycling hurdles remain: “Too many Americans are unsure of where and which materials can be recycled. And when materials do end up in recycling, municipalities struggle to find markets for them.”  

He called on Americans to continue recycling and composting and called on manufacturers and corporations “to ensure their products and materials are reusable and recyclable when possible and limit the use of non-recyclable packaging.”

The proclamation, similar to the one Biden issued last year, carries on a tradition dating back to at least 1999 during former President Bill Clinton’s administration. 

Among the recycling projects funded by the infrastructure law include a recently announced $2 million grant to support the Chicago Metro Recycling Education and Outreach campaign, which aims to increase collection and decrease contamination in northeastern Illinois. The project will study baseline recycling rates in relevant counties and conduct education and outreach campaigns meant to reach “diverse and disadvantaged communities.”

WM survey cites consumer confusion and uneven recycling access as ongoing hurdles

WM’s latest recycling report notes that industry collaboration can help remedy long-standing recycling hurdles such as consumer confusion and lack of access.

The Futurum Group, which conducted the survey, talked with more than 1,000 American consumers and businesses. It shows 45% of respondents said their biggest barrier is a lack of knowledge about what can and cannot be recycled. About 64% said their involvement in recycling efforts would increase if they knew more about what to recycle.

Half of respondents who live in rural areas said inconvenience — such as having to drive long distances to drop off recyclables — affects their desire or ability to recycle.

Survey respondents also said recycled content drives their purchasing decisions, with 75% of respondents saying they are more likely to buy such products compared with alternatives that don’t contain recycled content. However, about 60% say they’re not always sure which brands use recycled content in their products.

WM sees itself as a major player in improving recycling access and education, in part through its long-term plan to invest about $1.4 billion in 40 new and upgraded recycling facilities, including 13 in new markets and areas that "previously lacked” recycling access.  Facilities in Sacramento, Calfiornia, and in Philadelphia are opening this week, said Brent Bell, WM’s vice president of recycling.

Continuing outreach to customers about their recycling hurdles is also important, Bell said in an interview. “We want to know the concerns customers have on being able to recycle, to have access to recycling. How can we identify those gaps in the recycling program and what can we do better? Who can we work better with to collaborate and improve consumer expectation around recycling?” he said.

Cans For Cash launches takeback program in underserved areas

Every Can Counts U.S. and Replenysh have launched Cans For Cash, an initiative to recycle aluminum beverage cans in communities with limited recycling access that are located near major waterways. 

The pilot program, launched first in Blytheville, Arkansas, will offer public drop-off sites and buyback programs in five total cities, including locations in Florida, Illinois and Mississippi. The goal is to collect five tons in six months across the program.

The program is meant to offer “significant investments within local communities that lack curbside recycling,” said Scott Breen, senior vice president of sustainability at Can Manufacturers Institute, the trade association that runs the Every Can Counts U.S. chapter. 

Residents will be able to drop off empty aluminum beverage cans and receive digital payments of around $0.30 per pound. Program organizers say rates will vary by community and market value of scrap aluminum. Additional revenue from the scrap value will go to the city to support local community efforts, CMI said. 

Replenysh, which is providing the tech platform for the program, will manage Blytheville’s ongoing technology and network operations, and track the results in an impact report.

Blytheville Mayor Melisa Logan said the program is a way to raise recycling awareness and could be a model for other cities to replicate.

“The Cans for Cash program is a self-sustaining recycling model and will help fund future recycling efforts,” Logan said in a statement. “Activating our recycling potential, igniting a circular economy, and improving recycling behavior has been a goal of our city for years.” 

Colorado is improving waste diversion initiatives, but recycling rates still low

Colorado is making “promising strides” toward better recycling rates and circular economy initiatives, according to the State of Recycling and Composting in Colorado Report from Eco-Cycle and CoPIRG. Yet the state’s diversion rate is 15.5%, a low rate that the groups expect will improve with the planned roll-out of curbside recycling for all Coloradans in 2026.  

Colorado's population has increased since 2018, but waste has decreased from 7.1 million tons in in 2018 to 6.9 million tons in 2023, according to the report. 

The report notes that the cities with the highest recycling rates, including places like Boulder, Loveland, Durango and Fort Collins have similarities in their programs. That includes offering curbside recycling carts for every resident, offering volume-based pricing for trash to encourage more recycling and composting, and managing drop-off centers for items like yard trimmings and food scraps. Strong education programs also help give residents clear instructions on what can and cannot be recycled, reused and composted, the report says.

The report advocates for more focus on battery recycling initiatives, reuse initiatives and continued data collection to divert even more material from disposal. 

More America Recycles Day news:

• The Recycled Materials Association honored Recycling Caucus Chairman Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) for his years of work on recycling-related legislation and his “bipartisan approaches toward addressing and advancing critical recycling issues,” said President Robin Wiener. Carper is set to retire when his term ends in early 2025.
• The Recycling Partnership has delivered its 2 millionth recycling bin. It has now offered grants to fund curbside bins in over 110 communities. The 2 millionth bin, located in Fort Collins, was part of a $664,000 grant from the American Beverage Association’s “Every Bottle Back” initiative and the Colorado Beverage Association.
• Every Bottle Back says it has diverted about 705 million pounds of PET from disposal since the inception of the program five years ago. It expects to recycle 43 million pounds of aluminum over the next ten years.
• Goodwill of Colorado and O-I Glass have partnered on a glass recycling initiative that will provide collection bins at Goodwill outlets. O-I will haul the glass to its Glass to Glass recycling plant to manufacture new glass bottles.
• Consumer Brands Association has partnered with CIRT, a data and compliance platform, to offer the CIRT Check integration for its SmartLabel program. The tool will allow customers to scan a QR code on a product to get location-specific recycling guidance.