Clearwater, Fla. Residents to Get Six Months of Free Recycling Following Mishap

Clearwater, Fla. residents will get six months of free recycling, starting October 1st, after it was discovered that recycling was being thrown in with regular trash.

Last year, city officials were tipped off that the recycling being picked up at homes was being thrown into a landfill with trash instead of ending up in a sorting facility to be processed. Officials say this went on from July through December 2022. During this time, residents were still paying for recycling services.

To earn the trust of its residents, the Clearwater City Council unanimously approved to offer free recycling for six months starting in October.

"This mistake will not happen again," City Manager Jennifer Poirrier said. "It’s something I said then. It’s humiliating to uncover, but the work that we have done to bring it to where it is today is a testament to the leadership that is out there.”

A city spokesperson mentioned that the waste management department wasn’t telling the truth about properly processing the city’s recyclables.

"The proposed six month’s credit for the recycling fee that was charged is a reasonable compromise with respect to rebating the refunds back to the citizens and the fact that this will be implemented on the first of October by being removed from the bills is a very acceptable process," resident Patrick Raftery said. 

"I think the residents will be very happy with what has been decided and we will now put this issue behind us and move forward.”

Clearwater entered into a contract with a new contractor in January. The city will now work with Waste Connections for its recycling program.

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