Lifting NYC's recycling rate to 70% could create thousands of new jobs

By Paul Ploumis

ALBANY (Scrap Monster): The new report published by Transform Don’t Trash NYC coalition predicts significant job opportunities by recycling industry. According to the report, approximately over 3,000 new jobs could be generated by raising the New York City’s combined residential and commercial recycling rate to 70%.

The report titled “Clean City, Green Jobs-How smart recycling policies can build NYC’s economy” was prepared by the coalition’s core members in association with Justin Wood of the New York Lawyers for the Public Interest (NYLPI) and Jessica Quiason of ALIGN: The Alliance for a Greater New York (ALIGN).

The potential rise in NYC municipal solid waste diversion rate from its current 21% to 70% could rapidly create 3,300 new local jobs in processing recyclables and organic waste. This is in addition to the temporary construction jobs needed to build and upgrade recycling infrastructure. The impact of this growth on industries that are reliant on recycling could lead to creation of additional manufacturing jobs.

The report points out those cities with high diversion rates have 60% more recycling processing and collection jobs per ton of generated waste than New York City. Also, cities with solid waste diversion policies such as mandatory recycling and composting generate more jobs. Incidentally, Seattle which has double the diversion rate of New York City has around twice as many waste collection and processing jobs per ton of generated waste.

Currently, NYC has adopted ambitious zero waste goals. The City has committed to creating a more efficient zoned commercial waste system. The City of New York Department of Sanitation (DSNY) has recently expanded new diversion programs such as plastics recycling and curbside compost collection to millions of New Yorkers. However, rapid expansion of organics recycling capacity in and near the city is essential to the growth of mandatory commercial organics recycling, the report states.

National data and regional data compiled by the Tellus Institute show that recycling and composting create far more jobs per ton of waste processed than landfilling and incineration. New organic waste recycling technologies such as specialized anaerobic digesters would also support more jobs than transfer and disposal. By investing in the modern facilities needed to process recyclables and organic waste, we could create thousands of local jobs on the processing and sorting side of the recycling industry alone. For this, the city must build more facilities to process recyclables and organics.

As per estimates, by increasing the diversion rate of MSW from 21% to 50%, about 1,700 new permanent jobs could be created in and near New York City. By achieving 70% diversion rate, 3,300 additional jobs could be created.

For recycling to truly be sustainable, the industry must provide living wage jobs to local residents, and must actively reduce the environmental and public health burdens faced by communities. Too often, poorly regulated or designed recycling operations cause harm to communities and workers. Also, it is found that a few recycling companies in the New York City offer low-paying and dangerous jobs. The City must focus on constructing recycling and organics facilities that are safe for workers and environmentally sound for nearby communities.