Palm Beach County has once again exceeded the 75 percent recycling goal set by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. Palm Beach County achieved an overall 80 percent recycling rate in 2022, placing the county first among all 67 counties in the state. That’s a two-point increase from 2021, when the county achieved a 78 percent rate. Only two other counties exceeded the 75 percent goal in 2022: Collier at 78 percent and Charlotte at 76 percent.
Palm Beach County recycled approximately 3.2 million tons of the 4 million tons of municipal solid waste collected in 2022.
“Recycling is a community effort, and recognition for this achievement goes to the millions of residents, visitors and businesses that participate in our dual-stream system, as well as authority staff who work toward our recycling efforts every day,” Executive Director Dan Pellowitz said. “We owe this outstanding achievement to our highly successful residential and commercial recycling programs, the performance of our waste-to-energy facilities in recovering metals and energy from waste, and the performance of our permitted partners recovering and putting to beneficial use yard waste, construction and demolition debris, concrete and much more.”
The county’s recycling success is possible because of all who recognize the value of recycling and are dedicated to “recycling right” every day in Palm Beach County. While this is an achievement to be celebrated, there’s still more work to be done. Some incorrectly believe that recycling isn’t taking place in Palm Beach County. The SWA’s Public Affairs and Recycling Department is dedicated to dispelling recycling myths and ensuring that every resident, visitor and business in the county is properly informed and inspired to participate in recycling.
The Solid Waste Authority invites the public to visit their Recovered Materials Processing Facility to see the recycling operation themselves and learn more. To arrange a presentation and/or tour, contact education@swa.org or visit www.swa.org/education to learn more.
The Solid Waste Authority of Palm Beach County is a dependent special district created by the Florida Legislature in 1975. Since then, the SWA has developed an award-winning integrated solid waste management system to handle the county’s waste and recyclables.
Each year, the SWA:
- Processes almost 90,000 tons of recyclables.
- Burns approximately 1.8 million tons of trash to generate electricity at renewable energy facilities.
- Produces enough electricity to power approximately 90,000 homes.
- Recycles more than 150,000 tons of wastewater treatment residuals into an environmentally friendly fertilizer amendment.
- Safely disposes of more than 4.2 million pounds of home hazards.
- Collects rainwater from the roofs of Renewable Energy Facility 2 and stores it in a two-million-gallon cistern, which is used as part of the energy-making process.
Connect with the Solid Waste Authority of Palm Beach County at www.swa.org or on social media channels.
