ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — It's eco-week on 10 Tampa Bay Brightside, and we are looking at ways we can all be more eco-friendly. That can start with understanding where your garbage goes after you put it in the trash.
Every county handles its trash a little differently. In Pinellas County, it’s all brought to the 700-acre Solid Waste Disposal Complex. 80-90% of the trash gets incinerated and converted to power.
"We produce the equivalent amount of energy that it would take to power about 45,000 homes per day at our waste-to-energy facility," Emily LeMay, Solid Waste Program Coordinator with Pinellas County, explained. LeMay says the county sells it back to Duke Energy, which uses it to power the grid.
But what about the other 20% of our waste? That trash ends up in a landfill, which works fine – for now.
Pinellas County's landfill has a lifespan of fewer than 80 years, which means it will be full.
The catch? There's no room for another one, it's an issue that many areas across the state are facing.
“That's only about three generations. It's not a lot of time," LeMay explained. "And once it's full, it's full. And we'll have to figure out what to do with our waste.”
Eighty years from now, the county would likely have to pay to transport the trash out of the area, and at the very least that would be expensive.
That’s why it's even more important people keep a close eye on not only what they are throwing in the trash but how much they are putting in there.
"The best thing Pinellas County residents can do is to reduce their waste," LeMay added.
Pinellas County has a goal you can help them achieve before their only landfill fills up.
By 2050, Pinellas County and surrounding areas, like Hillsborough County, want to put zero-waste in the ground – converting it all to energy within 30 years and recycling the rest. This would help extend the lifespan of landfills.
"That'll help conserve our landfill space for future generations," LeMay said.