Hillsborough, Pinellas Lead Florida In Recycling

HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, FL — As the Florida Department of Environmental Regulation pushes toward a statewide recycling goal of 75 percent by the year 2020, counties in the Tampa Bay area are leading the charge. Hillsborough and Pinellas have already surpassed the state’s goal, tying in first place for countywide recycling at 82 percent, state records show.

“Recycling is one of the easiest ways that Tampa Bay residents can help the environment and the local economy,” Hillsborough County officials wrote in announcing the local accomplishments. “Recycling helps conserve resources, reduces the amount of pollution associated with manufacturing, leads to the development of new products, and creates jobs.”

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FDEP tracks progress made by counties across the state on an annual basis. The agency includes a number of factors as credits when establishing a county’s overall recycling rate. Credits, for example, come from “waste-to-energy facilities that burn garbage to produce renewable energy,” Hillsborough officials explained. Both Pinellas and Hillsborough counties own and use their own waste-to-energy facilities that help cut down on the amount of trash that ends up in their landfills.

Other counties across the region have also made great strides toward meeting the goal, FDEP’s website says. Pasco and Sarasota are both tied with recycling rates of 66 percent. Other counties in the region, however, are lagging behind a bit. A county-by-county breakdown of credits can be viewed on the state's website.

Pinellas and Hillsborough county officials credit residents, businesses and city partners for helping them lead the state, but say more work needs to be done. To learn more about recycling in the two counties, residents are asked to visit HCFLGov.net/Recycling or TampaBayRecycles.org.

To find out more about the state’s goal, visit FDEP online.

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