4/29 - Oregonians are producing more trash than ever and recycling less, according to a report released in April by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ).  

 

The report, which provides statistics for Oregon recycling in 2018, showed that our state's recycling and recovery rate, which peaked at 49.7 percent in 2012, fell to 40.8 percent in 2018.  The percentage of materials recycled in Oregon was at its lowest level since 2001 while Oregonians threw away more trash in 2018 than in any year since the state began tracking it in 1992. 

 

This is largely due to increases in the use of non-recyclable packaging including single use plastics, organic material being thrown away and a loss of infrastructure for pulp and paper recycling.   

 

"For the most part, Oregonians have been willing to pay more for recycling and recovery, but there is a big disconnect between what people think is being recycled and what is actually being recycled.  We are paying more for less recycling," said Sal Peralta, interim director of Zero Waste Oregon.  

 

That disconnect was captured in an April PBS Frontline report, "Plastic Wars", which used Oregon as a case study to illustrate the state of recycling in America.  

 

The episode, which highlighted the plastic industry's role in misleading consumers about what kinds of materials are actually recyclable, prominently featured interviews with Oregon regulators, recyclers, and landfill companies as well as current and former plastic executives.  It showed bulldozers dumping loads of non-recyclable plastic into landfills in southern Oregon.  

 

West coast states currently spend $500 million per year clearing plastic pollution from beaches and waterways.  However, the biggest long-term environmental impact of increased materials being landfilled might be related to climate change. Oregon landfills are 8 of the state's 30 largest emitters of greenhouse gases.  

 

The DEQ report indicated that stronger recycling policies could reduce greenhouse gas emissions from waste materials by 40 percent -- more than 6 million tons per year.  

 

The main driver for climate change from landfills is not plastics but recoverable organic materials like food waste, pulp and agricultural debris.  In March, Governor Kate Brown issued an executive order (EO20-04) requiring DEQ to adopt greenhouse gas emissions policies that mirror those of the strongest policies in neighboring states and a reduction of food waste.

 

"Oregon has a long way to go to meet the standards of neighboring states with regard to the recovery of organic materials.  Our state agencies do not have a strong track record of hitting the goals set by policymakers," said Ramsey McPhillips, co-founder of Zero Waste McMinnville.  "Even with the governor's support, it will require a lot of public pressure in order to get things moving in the right direction here."

 

Click here to read DEQ 2018 Material Recovery Report (released April, 2020)

 

Report highlights:

 

• In 2018, Oregon had an increase of 2.9% in trash generated and threw away 120,000 tons more trash than was recovered in 2017. (p. 1)

• DEQ estimates that Co2 emissions from waste materials could be reduced by 40% -- from 19.2 million metric tons of Co2 to 13.2 million metric tons by maximizing recycling and material recovery.

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