If you’ve looked at the Sioux Falls recycling trends recently, you’ve probably noticed they’re moving in the wrong direction.
The City’s reported recycling rate has dropped from 22.8% in 2017 to 16.3% in 2025, while the amount of material going to the landfill continues to grow.
So what’s happening?
A new report from The Recycling Partnership offers some helpful perspective. While it looks at recycling across the country, it explains why improving recycling isn’t as simple as putting out more blue carts.
Recycling is changing
One of the report’s biggest findings helps explain something we’ve been talking about for years.
The makeup of the recycling stream has changed significantly. Paper, which once made up about 70% of residential recycling, now makes up closer to 52%, while single-use packaging has become a much larger part of the recycling stream. Here at Millennium, we’ve also seen cardboard become a larger share of the paper we process as shopping habits have changed.
Even with that shift, the report says overall residential recycling tonnage has remained relatively stable nationwide. That’s important because it tells us the recycling stream is evolving—not disappearing.
So why is Sioux Falls different?
This is where our local data tells a different story.
While the national report shows residential recycling has remained relatively stable overall, Sioux Falls’ recycling rate has continued to decline.
There isn’t one single reason for that, but we do know our community has more work to do.
Some residents don’t have convenient access to recycling. Many apartment communities still don’t offer the same recycling opportunities as single-family homes. Some businesses have strong recycling programs, while others don’t recycle at all. And even where recycling is available, confusion about what belongs in the cart and contamination continue to reduce the amount of material that can actually be recycled.
If we want to reverse the trend locally, we have to improve participation—not just hope the numbers change on their own.
The report says five things have to happen
According to the report, recycling only succeeds when all five parts of the system work together:
- Packaging needs to be designed so it can actually be recycled.
- People need access to recycling.
- Residents and businesses need to recycle correctly.
- Recycling facilities need modern equipment to sort materials.
- Manufacturers need to buy those materials and turn them into new products.
If any one of those five pieces falls behind, the whole system struggles. That’s why improving recycling isn’t just the responsibility of residents, haulers, recycling facilities, manufacturers, or local governments—it’s something we all have to work on together
What Millennium is doing
Improving recycling takes more than one organization—it takes the entire community working together.
At Millennium Recycling, we’re doing our part by investing in modern sorting technology, partnering with the City of Sioux Falls and the communities we serve, and working with haulers and other local partners to strengthen recycling across our region.
Education is another critical piece of the puzzle. That’s why we’re proud to support our nonprofit partner, BINfluencer, which provides free recycling education through school presentations, community events, a local search tool, business trainings, facility tours, and its mobile education trailer. Helping people understand what belongs in the recycling bin is one of the best ways to improve participation and reduce contamination.
Turning the trend around
Sioux Falls’ recycling rate doesn’t have to keep heading in the wrong direction.
The national report reminds us that improving recycling isn’t about one silver bullet—it’s about strengthening every part of the system. Packaging needs to be designed for recycling. Residents and businesses need convenient access and clear guidance. Recycling facilities need modern equipment. And manufacturers need strong markets for recycled materials. When those pieces work together, recycling works better.
That’s the approach we’re committed to at Millennium.
We’ll continue investing in technology, collaborating with our local partners, and supporting recycling education because turning Sioux Falls’ recycling trend around won’t happen overnight—but it’s something we can accomplish together, one improvement at a time.
Want to learn more? Schedule a free facility tour or invite BINfluencer to your school, business, or community group to help everyone recycle with confidence.
Have a Recycling Question? Contact Us!