Explained
Keep Austin Beautiful Day is a citywide day of service spanning over 100 sites across the metro. During the cleanup event, thousands of volunteers work together to remove litter, restore native habitats and beautify neighborhoods along local green spaces and waterways.
In coordination with the 40th anniversary event, the organization also launched its LOVE ATX campaign in late 2024, with the cleanup event kicking off the final leg of the campaign.
The initiative encourages Austinites to increase recycling efforts and promotes greater education on sustainability opportunities for residents.
“With Austin’s population growing, we need a renewed focus on recycling and reducing waste. Love ATX encourages every Austinite to recycle and compost all they can,” Keep Austin Beautiful CEO Rodney Ahart said.
According to KAB, an estimated 20% of the city’s landfill waste is recyclable and 27% is compostable. Additionally, 20% of Austin’s recycling stream is contaminated with items like plastic bags, which should be recycled at grocery stores, not curbside.
Ahart noted that individuals on average produce four to seven pounds of landfill waste per day.
“We really want to encourage people to think through their planning from purchase, to consumption, to the end of life for that product,” Ahart said.
Composting is a way to give new life to organic waste, he said, adding that this is a component of sustainability that people often overlook. He hopes with campaigns like LOVE ATX, advocacy efforts can “flip the script” on how people traditionally think about trash.
He explained that the first question should be, “Is this recyclable?” followed by, “Is this compostable?” If the answer to both is no, the final option is the trash can.
The KAB initiative mirrors the city's goal of deferring 90% of its waste from landfills by 2040.
By the numbers
Ahart likened public greenways and shared spaces to a home, emphasizing that, like any household, they require regular maintenance or "chores" to stay clean.
“Statistics show that people are three times more likely to litter in a place that's already littered,” he said. “So that's why it's so important for us to do our regular cleanup maintenance—just like your house.”
During last year’s event, volunteers cleaned roughly 123 miles of greenways, which included:
- 6,278 volunteer hours
- 3,068 volunteers
- 148 project sites
- 21.4 tons of trash and recycling removed
Items that can be recycled include:
- Paper/envelopes
- Nonfoil wrapping paper
- Toilet paper/paper towel rolls
- Steel and tin cans
- Buckets/baskets
- Toys without batteries
- Jars/bottles and caps
- Hard plastic lawn chairs
- Milk cartons are not recyclable in Austin because the city does not have a buyer for that type of paper.
- Austin residents can donate old paint to the Austin ReBlend program. Residents can also receive a free 3.5-gallon paint can in three different colors.
- Never bag recycling when placing items in the cart. Loose plastic can get stuck in the truck or sorting machines.
- Items should be rinsed, but they do not have to be spotless. Cardboard should be broken down.
- The "What Do I Do With" online tool explains what to do with any item.
- After a multiyear rollout, all single-family to fourplex homes in Austin have curbside composting bins. Food waste—including pizza boxes—yard trimmings and natural fibers can be composted.
- Appointments can be made at Austin Recycle & Reuse to drop off other select items, including plastic bags, household hazardous waste, styrofoam and clothing.
- The city also offers an online tool to find other ways to dispose of items, such as mattresses, including donating or repairing.
