Dive Brief:

• Fomento de Construcciones y Contratas (FCC) has been awarded a five-year contract to collect and process recyclables from University Park, TX, a suburb of Dallas, as reported by Recycling Today.
• FCC will be handling an estimated 3,200 tons of residential material per year. The contract takes effect on Jan. 2, 2017 and has the option for a five-year extension.
• Materials will be processed at a new single-stream material recovery facility (MRF) being constructed by FCC on the McCommas Bluff Landfill site in Dallas. The MRF is also expected to open in January.

Dive Insight:

FCC secured the 15-year contract to build and manage the $20 million Dallas MRF last year. The long-term deal gives the company exclusive rights to process up to 120,000 tons of recyclables per year and also has a potential 10-year extension built in. The processing capabilities and educational opportunities this facility will provide are seen as an integral part of Dallas reaching its goal of 40% diversion by 2020.

So far Dallas has struggled to get its diversion rate much higher than 20% and has tried tactics such as social media outreach to engage more residents. Even with the new MRF opening it may be difficult to achieve such a significant increase in the next four years. While Dallas Sanitation Services hasn't ruled out using waste-to-energy facilities it says cheap landfill options in the region make that unlikely.

The set-up and technology used in the new MRF follows similar trends throughout the country. According to a new report from Government Advisory Associates, single-stream facilities are now the dominant type in the U.S. While they have increased the average tonnage processed among facilities they have also increased residue rates which will need to be managed accordingly.