On average, every person in Macon-Bibb County throws away six pounds of trash a day. That’s not even counting industrial and construction waste, which pushes the total to 8.6 pounds.
So found a study by consulting firm A. Goldsmith Resources that was presented to Macon-Bibb commissioners last week. The calculation is part of a 10-year draft plan to manage solid waste, which anticipates slow population growth and closure of the publicly owned Walker Road Landfill at the end of 2020.
Closing the landfill is expected to cost $9.3 million, Solid Waste Director Kevin Barkley said. To extend the landfill’s life and to reduce what must be sent elsewhere once the landfill closes, Macon-Bibb officials are looking to expand single-stream curbside recycling countywide and build a local center to process what arrives in recycling bins.