Glass recycling is back in Little Rock, per a new agreement with Waste Management, approved by city officials. The contract is good for three years, and while it does include a slight rate increase, it broadens the city’s recycling potential. An emergency clause was attached to the resolution to immediately put the contract in place as the previous agreement expired March 31. That means Little Rock’s rates will increase right away from $5.25 per month to $5.99 per month. The price is set to go up an additional 30 cents every year until 2027.
The contract also includes a newly approved plastic: clamshell types typically used for to-go containers. About 68,000 households in Little Rock can now chuck the glass and new plastic type along with the rest of their materials in their recycle bins. “It’s a big day for sustainability,” Mayor Frank Scott Jr. said.
Bringing glass back into routine recycling is possible through new equipment at the Waste Management materials recovery facility — also known as the MRF — in east Little Rock. The first feature of the new gear is called the “CP Glass Breaker,” which does what you’d expect.