Salt Lake City is receiving a $954,687 Recycling Education and Out-reach grant to implement improvements to the city’s residential recycling outreach program, following a competitive process administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
“Rain or shine, Salt Lake City’s residential recycling and waste collection program keeps our neighborhoods clean, safe and healthy,” said Mayor Erin Mendenhall. “This grant will expand our recycling efforts and build upon our work to lead the way on sustainability and stewardship.”
The funding will be administered by the Salt Lake City Sustainability Department’s Waste and Recycling Division, which directs residential recycling collection for more than 42,000 residential homes and 650 small businesses. In 2022, the city’s residential waste and recycling program collected more than 70,000 tons of materials and diverted 37 percent of waste from landfills through recycling and composting.
The grant will foster direct partnerships between the Sustainability Department and community-based organizations, schools and the city’s Youth & Family Division to offer Recycling Ambassador programs focused on the unique stakeholders each organization serves. Funding will also be used to add new part-time education specialists to the Waste & Recycling team.