Galveston Island is host to dozens of large events throughout the year, and recycling may soon become a mainstay at local festivals, cookoffs and fun runs.

The City of Galveston’s Recycling Division is partnering with special event organizers to provide recycling during events hosted on the island. The division will have recovery booths at each event to collect glass, plastic, and aluminum waste.

“We’re proud of this new initiative to introduce recycling at special events and better manage the waste produced,” City Manager Brian Maxwell said.

The division operates the Recycling Center at 702 61st Street, where residents may drop off materials accepted for recycling. They also offer curbside pickup for seniors, pick up recycling at Galveston College, private schools, and Galveston ISD, and support the City of Galveston internal divisions. The division is expanding its efforts to collect at different locations in the city, including during events as well.

The division kicked off the events pilot program during Yaga’s Chili Quest and Beer Fest event. The division also is applying for a grant from the Environmental Protection Agency to secure additional recycling resources to provide recycling during larger-scale events like Mardi Gras.

“We are looking forward to continuing our recycling expansion efforts by providing collection support to these annual events on Galveston Island,” said Andrew Van Slyke, Recycling Coordinator. “Currently, most materials from these events are landfilled, which is a missed opportunity to improve diversion. We are also hoping that grant funding will allow us to support the much larger events that occur on Galveston Island on a long-term basis. The need for recycling support at these events has been well documented, so there is no better time than now to get started.”