At present, recycling options in Norfolk are limited, even more so for cardboard and plastics.

There are various places in town where different materials may be dropped off for recycling.

Two private companies also provide residential recycling, where the companies pick up recycling just as they do normal garbage.

The city itself is not involved in any recycling services, said Robert Mercer, solid waste supervisor. But this could change before too long.

“The city at this time, and the past year and a half, has been discussing residential recycling internally,” Mercer said.

The city received a grant to conduct a study on recycling options, which has since been completed, Mercer said.

One of the models for a new recycling system in Norfolk is the hub and spoke system, which would involve surrounding towns and cities, Mercer said.

Smaller municipalities around Norfolk would be the spokes in this scenario. Recyclable materials would be collected in each of the towns, probably at a drop point, and then be transported to Norfolk.

In this scenario, Norfolk’s recycling could be collected at drop-off locations or residentially, Mercer said.

Then the combined recycling from Norfolk and the surrounding towns would be transported to a recycling plant.

There are still several problems that need to be solved before this could happen, though, Mercer said.

“We have to get the industries on board, and we have to find an end source somewhere close,” he said.

The “end source” would be a plant that does the actual recycling, instead of just collecting the material. There are few in the region, Mercer said. The nearest is a company in Kansas City that recycles glass.

The city also doesn’t want to infringe on companies that already offer residential recycling, Mercer said. This could be an obstacle to the city providing that service to residents.

NORFOLK ISN’T ALONE in its lack of recycling options. Neither the City of Columbus nor the City of Fremont offer residential recycling.

In Fremont, there are several private companies that offer curbside, residential recycling and there are several recycling collection events throughout the year, said Casey Vaughan, executive director of Keep Fremont Beautiful.

Additionally, the city does offer free glass recycling, Vaughan said.

Like Norfolk and Fremont, Columbus has a private company that offers residential recycling, said Vanessa Oceguera, executive director of Keep Columbus Beautiful.

Beyond that, the options are sparse, she said.

“Currently, it’s very slim,” Oceguera said. “We were going to implement (new recycling options) in 2020, and then COVID hit.”