Deltona, Fla., to Suspend Recycling Program

Deltona, Fla., announced earlier this week that it is suspending its recycling program beginning February 1.

The Daytona Beach News-Journal reports that on January 7, the Deltona County City Commission unanimously voted to suspend the city’s recycling program due to the rising costs of curbside recycling and “uncertainty about how much of that material winds up in the landfill anyway.”

This is a problem that other communities across the country have faced since China banned certain imports and tightened contamination standards.

The Daytona Beach News-Journal has more details:

The largest city in Volusia County has suspended its recycling program.

In a unanimous vote Monday night, the Deltona City Commission decided that given the rising costs of curbside recycling and the uncertainty about how much of that material winds up in the landfill anyway, the city would suspend its effort starting Feb. 1.

Deltona may be the first local government to discontinue recycling, but the rising costs associated with paying for the cardboard, paper and plastic placed in bins to be sorted and shipped to manufacturers has been discussed in several other local cities, including DeBary, Daytona Beach Shores and Ormond Beach.

Read the full article here.