Austin Resource Recovery reports dip in recycling tonnage, previews aseptic packaging and major contracts

Assistant Director Ron Romero and ARR staff briefed commissioners on the city's residential recycling program, composition and participation data, and several department initiatives described in the director's report.

Romero reviewed historical tonnages and set-out data, saying recycling collection peaked during the pandemic and that tonnage has declined since. He highlighted that glass, cardboard and mixed paper remain large commodities and pointed to contamination and shifting household consumption patterns as drivers of lower tonnage. "We're trying to put our finger on exactly why tonnage is going down and what we can do to continue to keep that steady," Romero said.

ARR shared results from set-out audits in April and October 2024: district-level set-out rates in audits ranged from roughly the low 70s to mid-90s by service area and day of week, with Fridays showing the highest set-out rates and Mondays the lowest. Romero said one recent overall set-out rate measurement was about 86% (April) and 84% (October) and noted district 7 consistently showed the highest participation.

ARR also described efforts to reduce contamination in the single-stream stream, noting composition studies and coordinated education work with MRF partners, neighborhood associations and Keep Austin Beautiful. Romero said the department is working to lower residuals and contaminants through targeted communications based on what MRFs report they find in loads.

On processing capacity and operations, ARR played a short MRF demonstration and summarized how MRF sorting separates cardboard, glass, fiber and container streams; Balcones Recycling and Texas Disposal Systems handle curbside material for the city. A Balcones/Alcony's Resources speaker (video) explained the mechanical and optical sorting process and quality-control steps used to make finished bales for secondary processors.

Romero told commissioners ARR plans to add aseptic packaging (e.g., certain beverage cartons and poly-coated paper) to residential single-stream collection later in the summer, pending vendor readiness. "We're really excited about starting this, later on this summer," he said, and confirmed the material is expected to be collected single-stream rather than requiring a separate drop-off.

In the director's report, ARR said the Universal Recycling Ordinance (URL) annual reporting period runs October through February and that the department migrated to an online public-facing reporting system; roughly 43% of affected properties had submitted reports as of the meeting. Romero also noted upcoming solicitations including a compost-processing contract, central business district collection services and residential dumpster collection services. ARR announced acquisition of an electric vehicle that will operate in the central business district and described recent brush collection work in Emergency Service District 4 tied to wildfire mitigation.

Commissioners asked technical and program questions about contamination, aseptic packaging, and set-out trends; ARR staff said they plan additional data analysis, further audits and continued educational partnerships and outreach. Amy Slagle, assistant director, said the ESD 4 brush collection was coordinated with Austin Fire Department and that additional on-demand brush or household hazardous-waste services are available citywide where ARR rate area applies.

No formal action was taken on the presentation; staff said several items will be brought forward through solicitations or council committee briefings in the coming months.