Plainview solid-waste leader details recycling gains, staffing shortfalls and new equipment

Brock Lively, Solid Waste Department director, told the Plainview City Council that the department expanded recycling and collection services over the past year but continues to face staffing shortages and contamination in the recycling stream.

Lively said the city now collects 2,410 residential “brown boxes” weekly, operates two commercial collection routes and has 370 blue recycling boxes in town, plus about 70 public-access dumpsters in parks and schools. He told council the department received 100 additional blue dumpsters that were deployed Feb. 5, 2025, and that staff added about 15 new commercial stops this year.

The city’s landfill received about 33,460 tons of municipal solid waste and 7,512 tons of construction-and-demolition debris last year, Lively said. A landfill survey completed in August showed an estimated 87 years of remaining life. The department reported running about 3,200 tons of brush through its grinder and handling about 58 tons of tires last year; the operation limits drop-offs to 10 tires per person per day.

Recycling operations reported stronger returns: the recycle center sold roughly $38,000 of material in the last year, the highest in 12 years, and the department received an award from Keep Texas Recycling for its 2024 efforts. Lively said those outcomes equate to the environmental savings of about "4,603 trees" and described avoided landfill volume in terms of cubic yards the program conserved.

Lively also reviewed a recent regional pilot with Coca-Cola Southwest Bottlers and Keep Texas Recycling in which Plainview contributed about one ton of PET bottles to a larger regional load; the city later obtained an advertising grant from Coca-Cola tied to that effort.

The department has invested in equipment and tracking. Lively said the landfill received a new compactor this year and the city upgraded from Zone R to Samsara telemetry for truck tracking and on-board cameras. He described features that produce distracted-driving and rolling-stop alerts, record front- and driver-facing video, and allow crews to capture GPS-tagged photos and snapshots for illegal-dumping response.

Staffing problems were a recurring theme. Lively reported turnover that at one point left the department about 50% understaffed. He said three employees retired in good standing, one transferred to another department, five left for higher-paying jobs elsewhere and one employee was dismissed for safety violations. To address recruitment, the Solid Waste Department runs an entry-level driver training program started in November 2023; Lively said 13 people have completed the program and a new class of four began the week of the meeting.

Lively identified program goals for the coming year: increase compaction and recycling volumes, reduce contamination at the recycling center and improve alley maintenance once ground conditions allow. He told council the department is working on public outreach to reduce contamination and said staff plan more training for new employees.

Council members thanked Lively for the presentation and asked questions about retiree rehiring and alley maintenance. There was no formal action on the report; it was presented for information.