The international airport in St. Louis, Missouri succeeding in doubling its waste materials recycling rate during the first six months of an innovative new recycling program. As a result of this increase, the airport is now adding additional single-stream recycling bins to help boost the rate even further.

In a report released last year, the Lambert-St. Louis International Airport said that prior to the new program, the recycling rate for the facility’s terminal and concourse operations was at a very low ten percent.  After implementing the single-stream containers, the rate then jumped up to twenty percent. Airport officials stated that they have long experienced higher recycling rates for the construction waste, runway waste, and scrap metal that other parts of the facility generate, but that the current concern was the lower rate attained by the areas travelers and the general public utilize.

In addition to increasing the number of locations where recycling containers are placed, the airport also moved to make recycling easier for busy travelers by switching to a single-stream waste collection system. Thus removing the burden of separating recycling items from the individual moving through the airport. The decision was also made to launch a food recycling program involving airport restaurants and food providers to convert food scraps and unsold meals into agricultural compost.

WasteCare Wants You to Remember: In addition to looking at your overall recycling numbers, it can be helpful to break down your rate into different segments. Is your business doing great at recycling paper but not plastics or e-waste? Sometimes, a high performing area can overshadow one that is underachieving. By helping to boost an under-performing recycling area you might be surprised how much money you’ll save!