Waste in Washington
Reduce waste through prevention and reuse | Keep toxics out of the environment | Safely manage what remains
State of the Solid Waste Management (SWM) Program
The way Washington manages its solid waste is changing for the better. In a matter of just a few years, SWM has taken significant steps to help the state sustainably self-manage the waste material that we can’t reuse, repair, repurpose, or recycle.
The response by our state to the ongoing recycling crisis wasn’t to find short-term alternatives to the disposal locations and methods that were closed when China implemented its Blue Sky policy in 2018. It was to create long-term solutions that provide incentives to use and waste less, and responsibly manage what remains.
The process to get here is ongoing and very challenging, but the SWM staff pushed to build programs and partnerships that are already yielding results – and we’ve only just begun.
From organic waste reduction to litter prevention and our growing waste tire program, we are making progress in all areas and have mapped out work that will occur over the next 15 to 20 years. The following annual report highlights our latest work and illustrates both the triumphs we’ve experienced and the challenges that lie ahead.
–Peter Lyon, SWM Program Manager
Washington’s Solid and Hazardous Waste Plan: Moving Washington Beyond Waste and Toxics
The State Solid and Hazardous Waste Plan (State Plan) guides waste and materials management in Washington. The State Plan envisions a future when most wastes and toxics have been eliminated and any remaining waste is safely used as a resource.
The State Plan supports the waste management hierarchy established in the solid and hazardous waste laws.
Sustainable Materials Management is essential to conserve natural resources
The State Plan adopts a Sustainable Materials Management approach, which is also endorsed by the U.S EPA. Sustainable Materials Management looks at the full life cycle of materials - from the design and manufacturing phase, through the use phase, to the end-of-life phase when the material is either disposed or recycled.
Looking at the full life cycle of materials is important because the adverse environmental impacts from extraction, production, and use – can far outweigh the impacts of disposal when the material becomes a waste.
Traditionally much of our work has been on efforts in the end-of-life management phase, but we are increasing investment in work that falls in other phases, especially the design and production phase.
Priorities of the State Plan
Current priorities include:
- Mitigate climate change through waste reduction, reuse, and recycling
- Focus on design, manufacturing and use phases, not just on end-of-life issues
- Reduce toxic threats in products and industrial processes
- Maximize effectiveness of recycling and organic processing systems
Structure of the State Plan
The state plan has the following sections with goals and actions for the next five years.
- Managing Hazardous Waste & Materials
- Managing Solid Waste and Materials
- Reducing Impacts of Materials & Products
- Measuring Progress
- Providing Outreach & Information
The Managing Hazardous Waste & Materials Section includes pollution prevention planning, dangerous waste compliance and compliance assistance, treatment, storage, and disposal facilities permitting and corrective action; and moderate risk waste.
The Managing Solid Waste & Materials Section includes reducing waste, improving recycling and composting, litter prevention and pick-up, reducing food waste, working on plastics issues, and monitoring solid waste facilities, among other actions. The Reducing Impacts of Materials and Products section includes environmentally preferred purchasing, product stewardship, product design and labeling, safer products, and reducing toxics substances. The Measuring Progress section includes data and measurement work and the Providing Outreach & Information section includes all the outreach work in one place.
State Plan updated December 2021
The state plan is updated regularly. The 2021 State Plan addresses the many changes in the waste world over the past five years. This includes changes in recycling export markets and growing concerns about plastics, food waste, climate change, and toxic chemicals and products. The Washington Legislature implemented new laws in some of these areas. This update addresses these realities as well as continuing the unfinished work from the 2015 plan. The 2021 update also includes increased focus on environmental justice in state plan work.
Moving toward sustainable materials management, the State Plan supports other governments and private entities adopting similar waste policies and programs. We are more likely to succeed with many partners engaging in similar activities. It won’t be easy, but working together helps Washington lead the movement beyond waste and toxics.
From 2000 to 2021, solid waste generation grew by nearly 71%
Solid waste generation reached a record 18.9 million tons in 2018. During the same time, Washington’s population increased 26%.
In 2021, about 50.9% of waste generated in Washington was disposed in landfills or mixed waste incinerators. About 49.1% of generated waste was recovered through recycling, composting, combustion, land application, or anaerobic digestion.
Environmental impacts of solid waste
Landfills contribute to climate change-driving emissions
When waste decomposes in landfills, it produces methane. This is a more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. Landfills also have short and long-term impacts on the environment that are more difficult to quantify. They may leak, introducing harmful pollutants into groundwater. Landfills can also erode into waterways or catch on fire. All of this has unknown consequences to surrounding communities. Incinerating, transporting and storing waste have negative environmental impacts as well.
Emissions, here and everywhere
If emissions are considered on the basis of what we buy, we should look globally at the manufacturing sources of our products. If you buy a TV or your favorite team gear, it’s likely manufactured in Asia. Are you only responsible for the emissions when you dispose of it? What about the manufacturing emissions from that product? Although we have little influence or control over these external emissions sources, we can each have an impact by focusing on the materials we consume – how much we consume – and not just on how we manage them at the end of life.
Economic impacts of solid waste
The costs of waste include not only the direct costs, like disposal or recycling fees, but also indirect costs in the long-term. These long-term economic costs are associated with the environmental and human health impacts that come with material extraction, mining, facility siting, product manufacturing, recycling, burning, and land disposal. But in terms of monetary costs, impacts are often external to the cost of the item being disposed. A closed landfill may leak or catch fire years after closure, causing huge economic impact to the agencies paying the cost of the cleanup, and ultimately, taxpayers. Or consider the costs of rehoming climate refugees impacted by climate change, brought on in part by emissions from manufacture of materials and products. These costs are rarely, if ever, applied to the direct cost of the product. However, they should be factored in when considering the overall cost of solid waste generation. While quantifying these indirect costs is difficult, there are some indicators available to measure the true cost of waste generation.
Eco-efficiency: Waste in pounds per dollar spent
Comparing waste generation to Washington’s gross domestic product (GDP) gives us a measure of “eco-efficiency” – the amount of waste produced relative to the amount of economic activity. For both a healthy economy and environment, we need to decouple waste generation from GDP, meaning that a strong economy does not need to result in more waste.
Since 2010, the solid waste generated per dollar of state GDP is diverging from the continuous upward trend in Washington state GDP.
Impacts of waste reduction
Reducing waste at its source greatly reduces environmental impacts in the long run, especially in comparison to just managing waste once it is already created. The environmental impacts of waste reduction can be quantified by comparing the amount of waste managed to the amount of waste reduced at the source. We do this by inputting material quantities into the EPA’s Waste Reduction Model (WARM) and analyzing resulting outputs in energy and GHGs.
WARM calculates emissions and emissions reduction connected to material types, how it is managed, and the many connected activities, like manufacturing and transportation.
Food waste is a particularly good example of a waste that’s significantly better to reduce upstream than downstream.
In 2021, recovering food waste via composting resulted in a greater decrease of GHG emissions compared to disposal. Additionally, preventing food waste at the source would have reduced GHG emissions even more.
Models show a 50-percent reduction in food waste could cut emissions dramatically.
We can calculate these emissions savings from source reduction for more than 40 materials using the EPA WARM with similar, though not as dramatic, results. Other lifecycle tools and estimation models are available, and all point to similar results: waste reduction is by far the most important strategy for reducing emissions, and investment in these efforts is key.
These can include projects like:
• Development and implementation of a contamination reduction and outreach plan (CROP).
• Environmental workshops and classroom activities for the public.
• Community-wide outreach/information campaigns.
• Information hotlines and special materials collection events targeting common recycling contaminants.
Funding history
In 1998, the Legislature dedicated 20% of money collected under the Waste Reduction, Recycling and Litter Control Account (WRRLCA). This account provides financial assistance to county governments for litter and illegal dump cleanup and prevention through Ecology’s Community Litter Cleanup Program (CLCP).
WRRED funding
During the 2015 session, the Legislature authorized Ecology to use part of the 20% to fund the WRRED grants program.
The WRRED program opened three competitive processes between 2018 and 2020 for one- and two-year grant cycles. During this time, 30 grants totaling more than $1 million have been awarded.
Where did it go?
Of the 30 grants, 47% went to county governments, 30% to not-for-profit organizations, and 23% to cities.
The projects covered a range of activities, including:
• Development of a CROP.
• Outreach to multifamily housing communities.
• Assessment of recycling contamination issues for targeted outreach.
• K-12 school food waste reduction and education.
• Outreach and education to businesses relating waste reduction and recycling contamination reduction.
Recycling, recovery key to greenhouse gas reduction
Recovering and recycling solid waste are important strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, conserve energy and reduce other potential environmental impacts. Recycling reduces the energy demand for making new materials by conserving virgin resources, which is why it’s so beneficial. Recycling and other recovery methods also reduce the amount of waste sent to landfills, reducing the greenhouse gases emitted during decomposition.
Washington’s recycling and recovery efforts for 2021 reduced greenhouse gas emissions by about 11.2 million tons (MTCO2E), or 2,918 pounds per person. They also saved more than 129 trillion British thermal units of energy. This is similar to conserving 1.1 billion gallons of gasoline – enough to power 1.5 million homes for a year (nearly half the households in Washington).
Extraction
When we replace a product we throw away, fossil fuels are used to extract and process the raw materials needed to make these new products. Manufacturing products from recycled materials typically requires less energy than manufacturing from virgin materials. Waste prevention and recycling delay the need to extract some raw materials, providing a net savings of greenhouse gases and minimizing other environmental impacts.
Carbon storage
Additionally, recycling can help store carbon. Carbon storage increases when fewer wood products are wasted and more are recycled, and when organic materials are composted and added to the soil.
Recovery rate
The solid waste recovery rate has increased overall, but is no longer at peak. Of the 17.5 million tons of recoverable solid waste generated in Washington in 2021, 8.6 million tons (49%) were recovered for recycling, composting or other beneficial uses.
Recovery by sector and system type
Recovery data help us assess environmental impacts from generator sectors and recovery systems. Additionally, the data can assist state and local planning efforts.
Commercial sector dominates recycling and recovery
The majority of materials collected for recycling and other beneficial uses come from the commercial sector – businesses, institutions, and industries. In 2021, the commercial sector accounted for 63% of all of the materials collected for recycling. This includes typical recyclable materials like cardboard and metals, and also construction and demolition materials like wood that are recycled and recovered for beneficial uses.
The residential sector generated 13% of the total material collected for recycling. Organic materials from both sectors make up 24% of the total material collected for recycling and recovery.
The total amount of organic materials collected for recovery has more than doubled since 2000 as well. The total amount of recovered materials in the commercial sector has more than doubled since 2000, while the amount of recovered materials in the residential sector increased by almost 50%.
Separated recyclables collection systems catch the most material
Most people participate in mixed or "commingled" recycling collection systems at home. While important, these systems move far less material than collection systems that separate individual materials.
Collection systems come in three basic types:
Separated recyclables: Recyclable material separated by kind at its origin.
Commingled (mixed) recycling: Two or more types of recyclables in one load, like cans, paper, plastic, and cardboard.
Organic materials: Solid waste that is a biological substance, of plant or animal origin, able to degrade in the environment or in a compost pile. Includes food waste, yard debris, food processing waste, wood, and garden wastes.
Recycling and recovery create jobs
Green-collar jobs are vital if we are to transition from industries heavily emitting carbon. Recovering and recycling materials creates jobs throughout the entire recycling system: collection, processing and manufacturing. The more materials we reuse and recycle, the more we encourage job growth in recycling industries, creating a cycle that strengthens economic and environmental sustainability.
Recycling Contamination Reduction and Outreach Plan (CROP)
Contamination in Washington’s recycling system – any materials improperly deposited for recycling – causes material to be landfilled that would normally be recycled. Entire bales of recyclable materials can wind up in the landfill.
Recycling contamination threatens the future of recycling programs, and creates numerous problems for the system:
- Higher costs to local governments and consumers
- Reduced use of a large source of domestic feed stocks to manufacture new products
- Higher greenhouse gas emissions and other environmental impacts
- Higher costs for recycling facilities to process the material
- Hazards to facility workers and their machinery
International restrictions on contaminated recycling
In recent years, China and other major international recycling buyers have imposed tighter restrictions on recycling bales contaminated with garbage. This has forced U.S. recycling exporters to contend with how much garbage is in the materials collected for recycling. The days of exporting large quantities of highly contaminated material are over.
To address this challenge, the Washington Legislature passed a law directing that we create a Statewide Recycling Contamination Reduction and Outreach Plan (CROP). Likewise, most counties and many cities are required to include a CROP in their local Solid Waste Management Plans. We are assisting 27 counties and four cities who are required to develop local CROPs.
Product stewardship
Electronics recycling with E-Cycle WA
Electronics use has grown exponentially over 20 years
By reusing electronics or by using recycled electronics as a manufacturing resource, excavating raw materials for new products can be reduced.
More than 465.2 million pounds have been recycled during the last 15 years. That’s equivalent to the weight of over 830 fully loaded 787 Dreamliner jets. E-Cycle has helped conserve resources and reduce pollution – keeping nearly 26 million pounds of lead out of landfills.
Electronics contain valuable metals, like aluminum and copper. These should be recovered rather than landfilled. We send electronics collected through E-Cycle to five processors in Washington and one in Oregon for recycling.
Free electronics recycling
Residents, schools, small businesses, small government agencies, and non-profits can conveniently recycle TVs, computers, laptops, tablets, and monitors for free. More than 200 locations participate as E-Cycle collection sites, like Goodwill, Salvation Army, and St. Vincent de Paul stores.
Producer-funded waste recovery
Launched in 2009, E-Cycle Washington became the state’s first extended producer responsibility (EPR) program. Electronics manufacturers fund and manage the program.
E-Cycle also supports increasing electronic equipment collection and transparency about the final processing destination for the collected material.
We work with over 300 electronics manufacturers, numerous retailers, 200 collection sites, 46 transporters, and six processors to help them meet the requirements of the law.
Find your nearest E-Cycle collection site at 1800recycle.wa.gov or by calling 1-800-RECYCLE.
Mercury lights stewardship
Mercury lights pose a toxic threat when broken
Accepting end-of-life, mercury-containing lights from households and businesses, LightRecycle Washington provides a comprehensive, safe, and convenient collection system for the state. Washington law classifies fluorescent lights as Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) .
Free mercury light drop-offs
You can drop off up to 10 lights per day, at no charge. You can deliver up to 10 mercury lights per day to registered retail and HHW collectors, and up to 15 lights per day to registered residential curbside collectors.
282 collection sites : 188 accept all program products; 66 accept compact fluorescent lights (CFLs) only; 28 additional sites that are unadvertised, that accept all program products. These include retail locations, residential curbside collection, and mail-back collection systems across the state.
Find a collection site by visiting LightRecycle.org , calling 1-800-RECYCLE, or searching our 1-800-RECYCLE database .
Producer-funded program
Washington law requires a producer-funded program that collects, transports, and recycles mercury lights. The LightRecycle program is paid for with an environmental handling charge on each new mercury-containing light sold. The charge, currently 95 cents per bulb, helps to ensure that these lights are recycled or properly disposed of at the end of their useful lives.
Product Care Association (PCA) , operates LightRecycle Washington on behalf of lighting manufacturers. PCA sends collected lights to EcoLights , the only licensed “final destination” lamp recycler in Washington and the largest in the Pacific Northwest. We receive program operation reports each year by June 1.
Municipal solid waste composition
Landfills and other facilities report the types of waste they accept very generally, since the waste arrives in mixed loads and often in closed containers. To determine the composition of mixed municipal solid waste, we conduct periodic studies that help businesses, governments, and other interested groups plan and measure progress in waste reduction.
The data from our studies also include the amount of material going to disposal facilities, and provide important information about areas of the state that might need more attention and resources.
Waste composition: Heavy in organic materials at 22.8% (1.2 million tons)
Our most recent waste characterization study is a comprehensive analysis of the overall waste stream for 143 materials, including a breakdown by commercial, residential, and self-hauled generator sectors in six waste generation areas. According to the study, the overall statewide MSW is primarily composed of organic materials at 22.8% (1,201,924 tons). This includes food waste at 14% of MSW (732,781 tons).
Solid waste composition trends provide helpful insight
Solid wastes composition data can provide insights into our culture and the impacts of our purchasing and disposal behavior – and how they changing alongside norms and climate. This helps us track progress on programs aiming to reduce and manage wastes better, such as recycling or reducing our food waste. The types of waste entering landfills can also help managers and scientists project future emissions into to the air, land and water. The data can also help businesses looking to recover useful materials before they are disposed, and prepare them for recycling or energy markets.
Since 1992, we are disposing 47% more municipal solid waste annually. This is not an environmentally sustainable trend.
Food and organic materials disposal have steadily increased. Construction and demolition debris (including wood) disposal in municipal solid waste has also grown.
Also increasing overall are “non-recoverable materials”, or those that aren’t practically recoverable because they lack a market. This includes some types of plastic packaging and products, furniture, disposable diapers, kitty litter, and painted and treated wood.
Plastics disposal has increased by 32% since 1992.
There is a general decline in the disposal of paper, metals, and glass. This reduction in the waste stream likely reflects our current recycling programs that did not exist back in 1992.
MSW landfill capacity
Of the 15 MSW landfills in the study, 11 are publicly owned and 4 privately owned. This includes a new privately owned MSW regional landfill that will begin accepting waste in 2024 and expects to operate for 180 years. The amount of waste disposed in MSW landfills shows movement from publicly owned facilities to those owned by the private sector. Since 1991, when the state first started tracking this type of information. The amount of waste disposed in private facilities versus public has increased from 31% in 1991 to 61% in 2023.
Most of Washington’s landfill capacity (75%) is at two privately owned landfills. A public landfill has the next largest remaining capacity (11%). The other 10 publicly owned landfills have a shared 5% of the remaining statewide capacity. The other two privately owned landfills have a combined 10%.
In 2018, Washington’s largest landfill, the Roosevelt Regional Landfill in Klickitat County, received solid waste from 29 counties in Washington, along with waste from five other states and three foreign countries.
Washington's publicly owned landfills mainly accept waste from the county where they operate. For counties that do not have landfills, regional landfills are their primary disposal option. Non-MSW debris, like construction and demolition debris, are often sent to other facilities to reserve landfill capacity for local residents.
Spreadsheets identifying the disposal location, type, and amount of waste for each county for 1994 - 2021 are at Solid waste & recycling data - Washington State Department of Ecology .
Other types of landfills and solid wastes disposed
Aside from MSW, other wastes include concrete and asphalt, wood, auto shredder residue, medical waste, contaminated soils, and wastes requiring a special permit. These can also be accepted by MSW landfills. There are also additional landfill types (inert, limited purpose, and ash monofill) that accept different wastes based on regulatory requirements.
Inert Landfills
Inert landfills accept materials including cured concrete, asphalt, brick and masonry, ceramics, glass, stainless steel and aluminum. Nearly 1.7 million tons of solid waste generated in Washington was disposed in 23 inert landfills in 2018.
Limited Purpose Landfills
These landfills receive only non-MSW solid wastes designated as nonhazardous. They accept materials including industrial solid waste, construction and demolition debris, land clearing debris, wood waste, ash (other than special incinerator ash), contaminated soil and contaminated dredged material.
More than 410 thousand tons of solid waste generated in Washington was disposed in 12 limited purpose landfills in 2018.
Ash Monofill
Municipal solid waste incinerators or “waste-to-energy facilities” that combust more than 12 tons of MSW per day must dispose of their ash in an ash monofill if it classifies as special incinerator ash. In 2022, the Spokane Waste-to-Energy Recovery facility, the only facility of this type in the state, sent 58 thousand tons of special incinerator ash to the ash monofill at the Roosevelt Regional Landfill. Changes from its classification as “special incinerator ash” to “solid waste” occurred in 2023 that opened up options for management of the ash at places other than the special incinerator ash monofill.
Washington’s 15 municipal solid waste landfills have the capacity to landfill almost 427 million tons of waste. Just over 6 million tons were disposed in 2023.
Organics make up a major chunk of all solid waste
This data comes from estimates in our Waste Characterization Studies and separate loads reported disposed in Washington.
Composition of Washington's organic waste
Organics are comprised of yard and garden trimmings, land clearing debris, animal manure, animal carcasses, crop residue, compostable paper, and food from agricultural, commercial, industrial, and residential sources.
Organic disposal methods
Cut organic waste to cut emissions and reduce other impacts
In the oxygen-free environment of a landfill, organic materials decompose and emit significant amounts of greenhouse gas. They contribute to the production of leachate that must be treated, or else it poses an environmental threat. Improper management of manure can result in pollution entering surface waters.
On the other hand, when organics are managed through composting, anaerobic digestion, or other methods, they are converted into products that can improve soil, generate energy, and feed animals. These methods comparatively produce much less water pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.
Some beneficial uses include land application of compost and digestate, anaerobic digestion for energy recovery, or as additives in animal feed.
50% food waste reduction goal
Disposed food makes up 14% of the solid waste stream (807,702 tons in 2021).
Our Use Food Well Washington Plan outlines recommendations to achieve a 50% reduction in food waste:
- Federal and state policies: Aiming at food donation, imperfect produce, tax incentives, food waste prevention, organics regulations improvements, school lunch initiatives.
- Funding: For state and local food waste reduction grants, increased staffing at jurisdictional health departments, and farm-to-school partnerships.
- Educational campaigns: For food waste prevention and food waste contamination reduction.
- Infrastructure investments: In data tracking, mapping of food waste flows, improved donation transportation, cold chain management, community food hubs, school infrastructure, expanded anaerobic digestion, and diversifying food waste systems.
Contaminants in organics
The presence of physical and chemical contaminants is a major issue for the collection and conversion of organics. Plastic, glass, and metal clogs machinery and makes the sale of compost more difficult when contaminants are visible in the finished product.
Even though chemical contaminants are not as visible as physical contaminants, they can cause contamination issues. Studies on sources and impacts of chemical contaminants are ongoing.
Composting infrastructure capacity challenges
Many of the state’s compost facilities are close to capacity, and one of the most impactful barriers to creating more capacity is the apple maggot. This invasive pest is devastating to many fruit crops and is present in more than half of Washington counties, mostly west of the Cascades. This pest makes it difficult to establish more compost facilities in eastern Washington. In western Washington, development of new facilities is difficult due to higher land prices, population density, and rainfall.
The cost to build and permit compost facilities is also a barrier to expanding composting capacity.
Research for energy and nutrient recovery
Research continues into organics recycling system improvements, particularly in expanding anaerobic digestion infrastructure and capabilities. Diverting more food to already existing anaerobic digesters, and building more digesters, will help keep organics out of Washington’s landfills and create products like renewable natural gas (RNG) and soil amendments.
Like compost facilities, barriers to expanding large-scale anaerobic digesters are closely tied to building and permitting costs.
Efforts to expand the use of small-scale anaerobic digesters are also being explored. Smaller systems are beneficial since they cost less, require less space to operate, and generate electricity and nutrients that can be used on-site.
Research also continues into the use of woody debris and crop residuals as soil amending compost and biochar or to produce heat and power through waste-to-energy boilers.
Educational outreach
We support organic waste prevention education, from low-maintenance gardening tips to food shopping and proper storage. Teaching people how not to make waste in the first place is the least expensive and most effective way to reduce organic wastes and prevent the environmental issues they create. Local governments coordinating compost education also receive grants through our program.
We also help fund organics management studies at colleges and universities – like waste-to-fuels research with Washington State University .
Plastic problems pile high
Plastic has become increasingly abundant in our lives. Single-use plastic packaging is found on our food, drinks, and products on store shelves. Plastic makes up take-out bags and containers, car components, the pipes in our homes, IVs in hospitals, microbeads in our scrubs, and the polyester in our clothes.
When it was introduced into everyday life as a “miracle material” in the 1950s, plastic offered a manufacturing alternative that was cheap, lightweight, and flexible. It can be shaped into rigid or flexible forms, making it useful for countless applications.
Plastic pollution is a critical environmental problem
However, plastic has grown into a critical environmental challenge for the 21st century. These materials break down and spread in the environment, into the ocean, soil, and air – and then stay there.
The statistics are startling. Each year, about 11 million metric tons of plastic waste enters the ocean. Over the next two decades, that number could grow to 29 million. According to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, 32 percent of plastic packaging escapes collection systems . The Pew Charitable Trusts projects the flow of plastic into the ocean to nearly triple by 2040 . Significant actions are needed on all levels to reduce this trend. Current research estimates more than 150 million tons of plastic are in the ocean today.
According to Washington's 2021 data, the overall plastics recycling rate was 9.3 percent . Washington shores have seen deceased whales wash up with plastic bags in their stomachs. Now the United Nations is beginning to write a treaty to curb global growth of plastic pollution .
Studying Washington’s plastic packaging
A 2019 plastic packaging law established three goals for January 2025 – that plastic packaging:
- Be 100% recyclable, reusable, or compostable
- Contain 20% postconsumer recycled content
- Be reduced when possible, optimizing the use to meet the need
Reducing single-use plastic waste
Several new restrictions on single-use plastics are underway statewide. Washington implemented restrictions on single-use plastic bags , food service ware items , care products provided at lodgings, expanded polystyrene , and others.
Recent laws also target single-use compostable plastic products by implementing new requirements to reduce greenwashing in labeling. Ecology’s hazardous waste program also recently implemented new requirements that restrict the use of intentionally added polyfluoroalkylated substances (PFAS), which are known toxic carcinogens, to consumer products.
We are currently collaborating with the Department of Commerce and Washington State University on a report to the legislature to analyze the impacts and effectiveness of the single-use plastic bag ban.
Promoting recycled materials in manufacturing
For a healthy recycling system, collectors need an end market for their recyclable materials. To address this need and boost the demand for these materials, Washington continues to implement a law requiring producers of many common consumer products to incorporate post-consumer recycled content in their product packaging, annually report to Ecology, and to pay fees based on the weight of plastic sold into Washington. This will promote recycled materials as a feedstock for manufacturers, increase transparency, and incentivize overall plastic packaging reduction.
Under this law, all covered product categories except for trash bags must include at least 50% post-consumer recycled content (PCRC). Trash bags will only be required to meet a minimum of 20% post-consumer recycled content.
Producers of trash bags and bottles were the first categories of products required to meet new recycled content minimums, and producers of household cleaning products and personal care products will be required to meet minimum requirements soon.
We are also considering recommendations to expand the plastic products covered by Washington’s recycled content requirements.
Washington continues to explore legislative actions to expand categories of plastics that must use more recycled content, but none have passed yet.
Looking ahead: Recycling data & reusable packaging
We continue to implement recommendations based on a 2021 study of Washington’s plastic packaging, including focus on the following that do not require legislative action:
- Analyze data on final destinations of recovered materials: Request additional information from recycling facilities.
- Reusable packaging systems: Support projects advancing safe, scalable transitions from single-use packaging to reusable packaging.
Ecology Youth Corps
For over 46 years, the Ecology Youth Corps (EYC) has provided more than 13,000 Washington teens and young adults with training, job skills, experience in environmental cleanup, field trips, and an opportunity to improve their environment. EYC operates both youth and adult crews. Youth crews, teens 14 to 17 years old, only work in the summer.
This program normally collects more than one million pounds each year from Washington roadways. The COVID-19 pandemic drastically impacted the EYC program in 2020 and 2021. Youth crews were cancelled and we relied on a smaller number of two person adult crews to clean statewide.
Community Litter Cleanup Program
In 1997, we created the Community Litter Cleanup Program (CLCP) to provide funding to local governments for litter and illegal dump cleanup and litter prevention education. There were 34 grant recipients in the 2021-23 biennium.
New Ramp Litter Cleanup Program
The Welcome to Washington Act (Senate Bill 5040) passed in 2021. This new funding is for local governments interested in cleaning state highway ramps and interchanges in their jurisdiction. Ten local governments received funds for this work in the 2021-23 biennium.
State Agency Funding
We also provide funding to these Washington state agencies for litter pickup, prevention and enforcement work:
- Department of Transportation
- Department of Corrections
- Department of Natural Resources
- Department of Fish & Wildlife
- Parks and Recreation Commission
- State Patrol
Covid-19 Pandemic Impacts
All state and local litter pickup programs were impacted by COVID-19. In addition to a reduced EYC program, WSDOT’s Adopt-A-Highway program was temporarily suspended. WSDOT was also unable to accept funds to hire Department of Corrections (DOC) Crews to assist with litter pickup along state highways as planned. Despite these challenges, Ecology and partners still collected more than 4.5 million pounds of material in 2020 and over 5 million pounds in 2021.
The litter problem demands pick-up and prevention
For more than a decade, we operated on reduced budgets for litter pickup and prevention efforts ended. During that time, the litter problem grew, along with complaints from residents and elected officials. Pick up efforts alone would not solve this problem.
In 2019, legislators restored funding, and we hired a litter prevention coordinator to bring stakeholders and consultants together to design and implement a comprehensive litter prevention strategy and behavior change campaigns.
We invested in audience research to help us understand the barriers and motivators to helping people change their littering behavior. We also tested messages and creative concepts with our priority audiences. This research shaped our new campaigns, messaging and tactics.
We Keep WA Litter Free
In the spring of 2021, we and partners launched "We Keep WA Litter Free" in both English and Spanish ( LitterFreeWA.org and PorUnWAImpecable.org ). It serves as an umbrella brand for our litter prevention work and uses a positive social marketing framework to help change littering behaviors.
A new commercial and ads ran statewide on all platforms. We developed a Litter Prevention Partner Toolkit full of resources for local governments and others to help amplify campaign messaging. We also entered into an agreement for WSDOT to install new signs along state highways.
Unsecured vehicle loads are a safety and litter issue
Though intentional littering is a major problem, it’s estimated that 40% of roadside debris comes from unsecured vehicle loads . They also cause more than 300 crashes annually on Washington roads, including multiple fatalities.
We launched the Secure Your Load for Safer Roads behavior change campaign in both English and Spanish ( SecureLoadsWA.org and SujetaTuCargaWA.org ). We worked closely with the Washington State Patrol (WSP), Washington Traffic Safety Commission (WTSC), WSDOT and local jurisdictions. This campaign runs for 3–4 weeks annually, kicking off around the National Secure Your Load Day on June 6.
During the campaign, the WSP runs emphasis patrols statewide targeting littering and unsecured loads. WSDOT’s electronic highway signs and WSP media spokespeople also have supporting messages throughout the campaign.
We partner with nearly 50 big box hardware stores statewide (Home Depot, Lowes, Ace) and train approximately 145 of their staff members every year. Store staff promote the campaign and how to properly secure loads by distributing tear sheets to customers and displaying load securing equipment.
In 2021, we selected Ferry, Grant, Kitsap and Klickitat counties to participate in a pilot program distributing 2,000 free cargo nets through community events. Local governments collected pre and post data on unsecured loads entering their solid waste facilities and provided ongoing education to residents to supplement our advertising and public relations efforts. We measured an average 3.4% decrease in unsecured loads immediately following the campaign and an additional 1.5% decrease one year later. Surveys to those who received a cargo net show a significant increase in people securing their load and the majority of participants said they were much more likely to talk with others about the importance of securing loads.
For the 2022 campaign, we partnered with King, Thurston and Yakima counties for the free cargo net giveaway events. We were able to measure an average 1% decrease in unsecured loads across those counties.
Not Littering: Simple As That
In May 2022, we launched the “Not Littering: Simple As That” campaign in English and Spanish ( LitterFreeWA.org/Simple and PorUnWAImpecable/Simple ) to address intentional littering on roadways.
In addition to a new commercial and social media ads, we ran a pilot program to distribute free reusable vehicle litter bags. The branded vehicle litter bags were distributed through four Fred Meyer locations in King and Pierce County during the 3 week pilot program. We evaluated the pilot program and expanded the distribution of vehicle litter bags through all 59 Fred Meyer stores statewide in September 2022.
Survey results from those who received a litter bag show people are using the bag, littering less, and are talking with others about not littering. The campaign also included advertising at more than 400 gas stations statewide (at the pump and in the store).
2022 Litter Study
With restored funding, we were able to conduct a litter composition and generation study throughout 2022. This study provides information on the quantity, types and sources of litter in Washington.
Consultants conducted spring and fall sampling at 182 locations across the state representing a wide variety of site types and environmental justice criteria. Many of these locations were used in our 1999 and 2004 litter studies. This information helps us measure trends, evaluate programs and legislation, compare our results with national litter data and identify high impact strategies to reduce litter. A final report will be available in June 2023.