At the capped landfill in Indian Lake, where we’re working to establish pollinator habitat, the view is unexpectedly beautiful. On a clear day, you can see mountains stretching in every direction, grasses moving in the wind, and the slow return of life to a place that was once purely for disposal.

It’s easy, for a moment, to forget where you are.

And then you remember: this hill is made of years of trash. Thousands of trips to the dump. Countless bags set out at the curb or dropped at a transfer station, all brought here. Standing there has a way of sticking with you. The next time you take out the trash, you remember again.

During our 5 years of working with Compost for Good, we’ve spent a good amount of time focused on food scraps and composting. But compost is only part of the story. Increasingly, we’ve been asking a bigger question: what happens to everything else?

That question brought us to the recycling center at the North Elba Transfer Station.

On a mid-morning visit, we watched a steady flow of residents come through the doors, carrying paper bags and boxes filled with carefully sorted recyclables. Each person made their way from bin to bin, guided by clear signage and supported by staff who helped ensure materials were placed correctly. By the end of the loop they left with empty hands, heading down the road to dispose of the rest of their trash.

The system is straightforward, but what makes it work is something deeper: consistency, clarity, and trust.

The recycling center is managed with a high level of care and intention. Materials are sorted, compacted, and sold through established relationships with brokers, with the goal of keeping everything within the United States. The operation supports itself financially, and the standards are high: items must be clean and properly sorted, or they’re turned away.

And the range of what’s accepted is striking: plastics #1 through #7, metal, cardboard, e-waste, tires, and more.

For many of us, that level of clarity is not the norm. Recycling can feel uncertain. What actually gets recycled? What ends up in a landfill anyway? Is it worth the effort?

At North Elba, the answers feel more tangible. You can see the system working. You can trust that your effort matters.

But across the Adirondacks, waste and recycling systems vary widely from town to town. Some places offer robust recycling programs. Others have more limited options. In some communities, residents pay by the bag for trash, which can lead to “wishcycling,” the practice of placing items in recycling bins in the hope they will be accepted whether or not they actually are.

Waste management can be expensive for many towns and counties, and there’s no single model in use across the region. And that makes it harder to understand what’s working, what isn’t, and where there’s opportunity to improve.

That’s why we’re starting by listening.

If you live in the Adirondack region, we’d love to hear about your experience with waste and recycling in your community. Your input will help us better understand the landscape and identify opportunities to support more effective, transparent systems.

Take a few minutes to share what it’s like where you live: AdkAction Recycling & Waste Management Survey