After being re-elected last year, Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava pledged to lead her constituents toward achieving a Zero Waste County, a goal that, as outlined on the county website, would necessitate a complete reimagining of the county's solid waste systems.
In tackling this growing issue, the county is poised to invest significant funds in solutions, launching a contest through the Miami-Dade Innovation Authority (MDIA) to identify effective waste diversion systems for the county.
(Courtesy Miami-Dade County)
Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava said her administration is focused on building a stronger, sustainable, and resilient Miami-Dade.
A COMPETITIVE CONTEST
On March 11, the MDIA launched its fifth Public Innovation Challenge, inviting innovative and early-to-growth startups to apply for a $100,000 grant to pilot their cutting-edge solutions that can effectively amplify waste diversion and reduction efforts in recycling and composting while educating and engaging the public.
Open to both local and global tech-driven startups, the challenge will run until April 21. Then, finalists will be interviewed between May and June and selected to test their solutions with the Department of Solid Waste Management (DSWM).
(Courtesy Miami-Dade County)
A backhoe amid trash at the South Dade Landfill. Miami-Dade County's Department of Solid Waste Management has relied heavily on landfills, leading them to reach full capacity between 2026 and 2030.
In an interview with Biscayne Times, Leigh-Ann Buchanan, president and CEO of MDIA, emphasized the county’s urgent need for waste diversion strategies, as both landfills are projected to reach full capacity between 2026 and 2030. She also highlighted the county’s alarmingly low recycling rate –only 37% of the five million tons of solid waste produced annually is recycled, significantly trailing the national average of 50%.
“Given that we are surrounded mostly by water, our capacity to expand is very limited,” Buchanan said, regarding prioritizing waste diversion efforts rather than to continue relying on landfills and incinerators. “We urgently need to adopt more sustainable and scalable waste diversion strategies to avoid the environmental impacts and advance the mayor’s initiative in becoming a zero-waste county.”
Buchanan emphasized the need for proven solutions that are effective in the county. Proposals will be assessed based on their strategies to increase public participation in recycling, encourage waste reuse, and educate residents on proper trash sorting to minimize contamination.
(Courtesy of Miami-Dade County)
Leigh-Ann Buchanan, president and CEO of MDIA.
“We’re looking for solutions, like platforms that connect residents with recycling resources, including educational tools to reduce contamination and optimize recycling efforts,” Buchanan said. “This includes mobile applications that help residents sort their waste and provide waste management analytics to help the Department of Solid Waste optimize waste diversion and reduce inefficiencies, as well as waste diversion technologies for organic waste types.”
PAST RECYCLING CHALLENGES
Recycling in Miami has become a tale told by those who have access to the county’s blue bins and can gather recyclables like paper, plastic, and glass, which are picked up every other week. A report by the Miami Herald revealed how the county’s curbside recycling program serving unincorporated areas and the nine municipalities has a higher recycling rate of 60% than the 37% of county-wide recycling, which includes industrial and commercia
Caiti Waks, co-founder and president of Debris Free Oceans
l waste. It was also stated that the City of Miami’s contamination rate is higher than the county’s.
Caiti Waks, co-founder and president of Debris Free Oceans, explained that recycling in the county is challenging because people are not aware of what is recyclable, and that it’s not their fault.
“The recycling industry put the recycling symbol on everything,” Waks said. “The recycling symbol is not regulated, and that was strategic to make everybody feel good, like everything can be put in the recycling bin and you can keep consuming whatever you want.”
Waks added how the overwhelming presence of non-recyclable items flooding recycling facilities leads to high contamination rates, making it increasingly difficult and unprofitable for processors to sort and recycle materials effectively.
“Aluminum is very easily recycled and is indefinite. So, certain materials are better for recycling,” she said. “With plastic, what is mostly recycled is narrow-neck products such as plastic bottles and laundry detergent containers.”
For more information on the MDIA grants, visit atmdia.miami/waste.