New government waste recycling effort

MADISON, Wis. (AP) - Based on the success of a pilot program, Wisconsin state government is launching a much broader waste recycling effort next year.

Starting in January, all construction and demolition debris from state projects costing more than $5 million will have to be recycled rather than put in landfills.

The state Department of Administration said Monday that a two-year-old successful pilot program involving the Department of Natural Resources, the Division of State Facilities and a nonprofit group called WasteCap Resource Solutions spurred the expansion.

That pilot worked on developing methods, standards and staff training to increase recycling.

A 2002 study found that 30 percent of what goes into landfills comes from construction and demolition debris.