SEATTLE (Recycling Monster): The City of Cincinnati has been awarded a $5 million federal grant. The grant money will be utilized to replace nearly 80,000 aging curbside recycling carts and expand recycling services to about 5,000 additional households.
City officials said that out of the around 100,000 recycling carts currently deployed, nearly 80% were distributed during the 2010s. These carts are already beyond their 10-year warranty period. The city’s decision to overhaul has been maintly attributed to rising failure rates.
According to Howard Miller, environment division manager for Cincinnati’s Office of Environment and Sustainability, replacing carts individually had become inefficient and expensive. Instead, the city will replace all outdated carts at once beginning in summer 2027. In the meantime, old carts will be recycled into new ones to support sustainability goals.
The 5,000 new carts will primarily serve neighborhoods with low recycling participation. The city plans to organize a community engagement campaign, aimed at educating residents on recycling best practices and encouraging stronger participation.
The initiative will support the Green Cincinnati Plan, which aims to achieve a 50% landfill diversion rate by 2030. It must be noted that Cincinnati currently diverts between 18% and 22% of waste.
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