Curbside Recycling
ACTION ALERT: Support Curbside Recycling at Council Wednesday 7/29/26
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Curbside Recycling is on Councilʻs 7/29/26 Agenda.
Letʻs Turn Out a Tidal Wave of Support for Curbside Recycling!
This Wednesday, July 29, the Kauaʻi County Council will take up Resolution No. 2026-24 - which urges the County Administration “to prioritize waste diversion, curbside recycling, and a Materials Recovery Facility as the Kekaha Landfill nears capacity.”
This is our chance to show the Council and the Mayor that Kauaʻi overwhelmingly supports curbside recycling. We're hoping for at least 50 people to testify in person and 100 supportive email testimonies.
Every voice counts, and yours would mean a lot.
Meeting details: Show up this Wednesday, July 29 at 8:30 a.m. Council Chambers, or testify remotely, or send testimony via email (details below).
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HOW TO TESTIFY
1. In-Person Testimony
Arrive by 8:30 a.m. and sign up to speak on agenda item “Resolution No. 2026-24 re Curbside Recycling.” Each speaker gets 3 minutes. If you donʻt want to wait until the Resolution comes up on the agenda, you will be able to speak under “Communications,” which comes at the beginning of the agenda
2. Remotely
Register to testify remotely by emailing remote.signup@kauai.gov by noon Tuesday, 7/28, the day before the Council meeting. Indicate that you wish to testify remotely at the 7/29 Council meeting on agenda item, “Resolution 2026-24 re Curbside Recycling.”
3. In Writing
Email your testimony to counciltestimony@kauai.gov up to one hour before the meeting.
WHAT TO SAY (if you donʻt already have a plan):
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Give some identifying information that will connect you to the councilmembers--e.g. Name, job (Iʻm a teacher/firefighter/), role in the family (Iʻm a father of three), connection to Kauaʻi (I have lived on Kauaʻ for 5, 10, 30, 90 years)
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Say that you strongly support curbside recycling and urge the Council to pass the resolution..
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Say why you support curbside recycling.
Here are some reasons you can choose from:
a) Curbside recycling is the most environmentally sound and sustainable strategy for traditional recyclables (paper, cardboard, metals, plastics, glass).
b. It supports a circular economy.
c. It will extend the life of our landfill.
d. It creates jobs.
If you want to be brief, you donʻt have to go into why you support curbside recycling as long as you say clearly that you support it.
End by thanking the Council for the opportunity to testify or for considering the resolution.
SOME INFORMATION ABOUT CURBSIDE RECYCLING
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Thirty-six percent of materials going into the Kekaha Landfill are traditional recyclables: paper, metals, glass and plastics. This is the largest category of waste in the landfill. A curbside recycling program could divert a majority of the materials in this category from the landfill.
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The Kawakami Administration asserts that curbside recycling is too expensive, but it does not provide any cost figures for the alternatives like waste-to-energy or landfilling. “Expensive” is relative. If waste-to-energy and/or a new landfill are more expensive per ton (as they are likely to be), curbside recycling will become the least expensive alternative as well as the most environmentally benign.
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Curbside recycling could be affordable if the Mayor and the Council were to update and decrease the current subsidy for trash pick up (the trash fee we pay with our property taxes is less than half of the actual cost) and charge only a small fee or nothing for curbside recycling. That would create a large incentive for recycling.
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In 2011 the County Council committed to a 70% diversion goal; however, the Countyʻs diversion rate has stagnated at 43% for a decade.
PLEASE LET US KNOW IF YOU INTEND TO TESTIFY
It will help to know how many of you are committed to providing testimony in one form or the other.
Email ruta.jordans@gmail.com and let us know how you plan to testify (in person or by email).
If you email testimony, CC us,, or send separately if you prefer.
NOW IS THE MOMENT!
Please spread the word to friends, co-workers, and family, anyone on Kauaʻi who cares about where our trash goes. Urge them to submit testimony. Share this action alert with them.
IT’S TIME TO SPEAK UP FOR CURBSIDE RECYCLING!!
Mahalo nui loa!
The Zero Waste Kauaʻi Team
Making Recycling Easy and Accessible
Kauaʻi needs better systems to handle recyclable materials efficiently and responsibly.
We advocate for:
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Island-wide curbside recycling
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A Materials Recovery Facility (MRF)
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Improved sorting and processing infrastructure
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Policies that make recycling simpler for everyone
Convenient recycling isn’t a luxury, it’s a necessity for a sustainable island future.
FAQs
What is curbside recycling? A system where recyclable materials like paper, glass, metal, and plastic are collected right at your driveway and taken to a Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) instead of the landfill.
What is a MRF? A MRF (pronounced "murf") is a specialized facility where recyclables are cleaned, sorted, and baled for sale to manufacturers, who turn them into new products like toilet paper, aluminum cans, plastic lumber, and even road-paving material like Glassphalt. For curbside recycling to work on Kauaʻi, we need to build one first.
Why does curbside recycling matter so much? Right now, waste follows a linear path: extract resources → manufacture → use → dispose. That cycle depletes forests, habitats, and water, and drives environmental harm. Shifting to a circular system, through the 5Rs, reduces waste and keeps resources in use longer.
According to the County's own study, 36% of what's in our landfill is recyclable material. Curbside recycling alone could reduce that by 25 to 30%. Combined with organics and construction and demolition diversion, the County's overall diversion rate could finally climb after years of stagnation.
Why isn't drop-off recycling enough? Drop-off centers help, but they have real limits:
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Inconvenient — not everyone has the time or means to sort, store, and haul recyclables to a drop-off site.
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Limited participation — the system depends on people taking initiative, and most won't, whether from lack of time, motivation, or awareness.
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Inefficient — curbside collection reaches far more households with far less friction, which means more material actually gets diverted.
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Curbside recycling makes recycling accessible and hassle-free for everyone, not just those with the time to make a special trip.
Mahalo nui loa for your support.
'A'ohe hana nui ke alu 'ia — "No task is too great when undertaken together."