Attention, Idahoans: Republic Services has changed its rules about what you can recycle
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Trash Troubles
Trash Troubles is a 2024 Idaho Statesman series on trash and recycling in the Treasure Valley. Inside are all nine stories in the series, plus three previous Statesman stories on the topic.
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Good news for environment-conscious Southern Idaho residents: Recycling and composting programs are expanding. Now, you can add No. 5 plastic food tubs — including sour cream, cottage cheese and yogurt containers — as well as lightweight, crinkly No. 1 plastic water bottles into your blue carts for mixed recycling.
In Boise, the changes come at no extra cost to residents or the city, Melissa Stoner, a spokesperson for the city’s Public Works Department, told the Idaho Statesman.
Boise residents “have asked for more options” to recycle, Mayor Lauren McLean said in a news release. “So we have worked alongside our partners at Republic Services to offer more services to more people.”
The change was a Republic Services initiative, Stoner said. The change applies to the company’s entire Idaho service area, said Rachele Klein, the company’s business director. Along with Boise and other cities Republic serves in Ada and Canyon counties, the company receives and processes recyclables from multiple firms hauling them from local jurisdictions across Southern Idaho.
Boise separately announced a pilot program to allow the residents of multifamily buildings, including apartments and condominiums, to compost. The city has budgeted $5,000 for the one-year pilot to fund cart enclosures, signage and door hangers, Stoner said by email.
After the pilot concludes, the city plans to decide whether to continue or expand the program and allocate its budget.
As of October, about 40% of residential waste in Boise was diverted from the landfill through city recycling and compost programs, according to the city’s release.
Boise residents can continue to recycle clean, dry Nos. 1 and 2 plastics shaped like a jug, bottle, or jar, including caps and lids, in their blue carts. Learn more about what to recycle — and what not to — at cityofboise.org.
This story was originally published October 31, 2024 at 4:00 AM.
CORRECTION: This story was updated on Nov. 4, 2024 to reflect the fact that Republic Services led the initiative to expand recycling options, and that the changes took effect across Southern Idaho, not just in Boise.
