The City of Tacoma is stepping up its recycling game, initiating an inventive pilot project aimed squarely at the pesky problem of contamination. With a $1.8 million boost from the Environmental Protection Agency's Recycling Education and Outreach Grant Program, the city's Solid Waste Management Division has teamed up with Prairie Robotics to embark on a two-year mission. The goal? To enlighten its citizens on the dos and don'ts of curbside recycling.
In this technological twist, smart cameras will vigilantly scan through the recyclables collected at residences, and when something awry is detected, residents will to directly receive a postcard that points out the errors of their disposal ways. "Contamination impacts how we can deliver services and the cost of those services for all residents," Solid Waste Management Division Manager Lewis Griffith remarked in a statement on the City of Tacoma's official website. This innovative pilot is intended to shape more sustainable habits across Tacoma's neighborhoods.
Confirmed by the city, the Canadian-based Prairie Robotics was chosen for this initiative. Sporting an AI-powered platform, it's already proven its mettle with waste providers and municipalities in both the United States and Canada, with stints in cities such as Greensboro, N.C., and East Lansing, Mich. Its system gives feedback in real time, assisting residents in refining their recycling precision.
"We are thrilled to partner with the City of Tacoma on this project and believe that our platform can help to reduce contamination in recycling across Tacoma," Prairie Robotics CEO Sam Dietrich articulated in a news release. The residents of Tacoma will start to notice these high-tech recycling audits in phases over the upcoming year, with designated areas starting to get postcards already from this month. And while it's an educational nudge, Tacoma is not planning to issue any fees or penalties for mistakes flagged during the pilot. The project, extending through the grant's duration, is set to undergo evaluation come June 2027.
