Generation, Recycling and Per Capita data (1986-2007)

Washington State has been collecting recycling data since 1986, through the Solid Waste and Financial Assistance Program's annual Recycling Survey and annual reports from recycling facilities. Ecology currently tracks about 30 recycled materials, from which the municipal solid waste (MSW) recycling rate is calculated. This is closely aligned with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency guidelines for measuring MSW recycling.

New categories are measured on recycling reports as new markets emerge for materials that were previously being disposed at landfills or incinerators. These materials are considered outside of the MSW stream, and therefore are not included in the recycling rate, but are counted as "diverted" from the waste stream.

These "diverted" quantities show that an important effort is being made on the part of recyclers, governments, businesses, and the public to recover increasingly large quantities of material from landfills and incinerators and use them as resources.

This spreadsheet includes a summary of solid waste disposed, generated, and per capita figures.

Recycling, Diversion, Disposal and Generation data