The 8th State of Recycling and Composting Report Outlines Colorado’s Waste Reduction Successes
Today, Eco-Cycle and CoPIRG Foundation release our 8th edition of the State of Recycling and Composting in Colorado report, revealing early payoffs in waste reduction and recycling despite a growing population. The report also shows that composting services have diverted food scraps and yard trimmings from landfills and increased support for local businesses.
Key findings from the report include:
– Waste has decreased while the population has increased. Total municipal waste generated dropped from 7.1 million tons in 2018 to 6.9 million tons in 2023. In the same timeframe, the state population has increased, and the benefits of recent waste reduction policies have yet to be realized.
– Colorado’s recycling and compost rate stubbornly stagnates at 15.5%. Disappointingly, Colorado’s recycling and compost rates remain low. However, the roll-out of curbside recycling for ALL Coloradans in 2026, thanks to a new policy championed by Eco-Cycle and partners, is expected to increase this rate.
– The cities of Boulder, Loveland, and Fort Collins have the highest recycling rates on the Front Range. Aspen and Durango have the best rates in Greater Colorado. Top recycling cities have a few things in common, including:
- Every resident is provided a curbside recycling cart;
- Volume-based pricing for trash encourages recycling and composting;
- Convenient drop-off centers and access to curbside collections are available for food scraps and/or yard trimmings; and
- Strong education programs exist to provide clear guidelines on what can and cannot be recycled, reused, and composted.
Read the Report: The State of Recycling and Composting in Colorado (8th Edition)
Read the executive summary here.
Looking forward, we encourage state and local leaders to focus on the following areas:
- Divert More Organics: Diverting organic matter such as food scraps and yard trimmings from landfills avoids methane emissions and creates valuable soil amendments for depleted Colorado soils, including compost, biochar, and mulch, which protect and build healthier soils. A recent state report shows we could increase organics diversion from around 10% of organic materials to 60% by 2036 by adding more collections and processing infrastructure as well as policies that require the diversion of organic material from landfills through donation of useable food and composting of non-edible organic material, similar to the policy the City of Aspen adopted in 2023.
- Implement Producer Responsibility for Batteries: Batteries contain various materials, some of which are very valuable. However, when improperly disposed of in the trash or curbside recycling, batteries, particularly lithium-ion batteries, pose a serious fire hazard. Battery-caused fires in collection trucks, material recovery facilities, and waste facilities are increasingly common, endangering employees, damaging infrastructure, and significantly increasing operational and insurance costs. Adopting a producer responsibility program for batteries would provide funding for appropriate disposal, a mechanism to reduce battery waste, and ensure valuable materials are recovered and recycled.
- Support Reuse: Reuse offers significant environmental benefits by reducing the need for new products and saving consumers and businesses money. The potential for reuse is vast, spanning many sectors such as reuse/refill businesses (bulk food, serviceware, etc.), resale markets (thrift/consignment, used books, gear and cars, auction, pawn, etc.), rental services (cars, bridal, equipment, etc.), and repair services (tailoring/mending, shoe repair, electronic repair, auto repair, etc.).
Stay tuned for ways you can help build circular economies in Colorado, including supporting upcoming legislation for battery producer responsibility in 2025!
