In 2010, New Mexicans buried $168 million worth of valuable material in landfills instead of recycling it. A new report released by the New Mexico Recycling Coalition (NMRC) details the cost to send materials to the landfill, as well as the missed value of materials that could have been diverted for recycling.
The study found that, based on 29 reporting landfills in the state, the average cost to dispose of solid waste materials is $31.29 per ton. Using that average rate, it is estimated New Mexicans spent $51 million to bury $168 million worth of recyclable material.
New Mexicans recycled 200,000 tons in 2010, the year of the report’s analysis, with an estimated market value of $25 million.
Source: American Recycler