NEWS: Casar & Doggett Deliver $4 Million EPA Recycling Grant to the City Austin

AUSTIN, Texas – This week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced that the City of Austin will receive a Solid Waste Infrastructure Grant (SWIFR) of $4,000,000 to construct and maintain a new reuse warehouse. The warehouse will be an onsite space for redistributing used furniture and building materials and hosting programming. As part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, this grant will improve recycling systems in Austin. 

“Right now, far too many materials are wasted when they could be recycled and reused by people in need. Improved recycling not only lets these items have a second life — but they’ll be a lifeline to struggling Austinites,” said Congressman Greg Casar (TX-35). “I’m grateful for the Biden Administration supporting this creative way of reducing waste while helping people get back on their feet.”

“Reduce, reuse, recycle: Austin is moving closer toward achieving our long-term goal of zero waste. By preventing usable yet bulky furniture from overwhelming our landfills, we can help our most vulnerable neighbors get back on their feet and create a welcoming home for themselves and their families,” said Congressman Lloyd Doggett (TX-37). “The Infrastructure Law I supported is delivering for Central Texas, and I look forward to continue working to obtain additional federal resources for our community.” 

“Through the Biden-Harris Administration’s Investing in America agenda, EPA has given more than $100 million to cities like Austin to ensure underserved areas can increase their capacity for solid waste recycling and reuse,” said EPA Regional Administrator Dr. Earthea Nance. “Today’s grant will help our partners in Austin extend the life of furniture and building materials, prevent more landfill waste, and help families in need.”

“EPA is proud to support the City of Austin in its efforts to provide its citizens with valuable goods that might otherwise end up in a landfill,” said Cliff Villa, Deputy Assistant Administrator of EPA’s Office of Land and Emergency Management. “By redistributing used furniture and building supplies, Austin’s new reuse warehouse will help reduce waste, assist those transitioning out of homelessness, create a circular economy, and build a more resilient community.” 

“Through this grant, Austin will be able to get good used furniture out of our landfills and into the homes of folks transitioning out of homelessness. It’s an innovative and sustainable approach to reducing waste in our city and helping those most vulnerable create a stable home,” said Austin Mayor Kirk Watson. “Thank you to our congressional delegation for your work,” said Mayor Watson.

“We are excited that the EPA has selected our initiative for their grant program,” said Richard McHale, Director of Austin Resource Recovery. “The reuse warehouse will connect valuable items, like furniture, to Austinites who can use them. It will also keep these items out of the landfill as we continue to work toward zero waste.”

The City of Austin has a surplus of valuable goods that are going to the landfill due to space constraints and limited reuse. Austin Resource Recovery, a department of the City of Austin, intends to use the EPA grant funding to permanently fill the resource gap by opening a new reuse warehouse. The new warehouse will accept and redistribute used furniture at no cost to nonprofits and their clients, with a focus on furnishing the homes of those transitioning out of homelessness. The warehouse will eventually expand to also accept building materials. The overall goal of this project will be to reduce the amount of furniture and building materials sent to landfills annually. 

This grant reflects the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to tackling environmental justice and the climate crisis. Many communities with environmental justice concerns carry a disproportionate environmental and human health burden from waste management. Last year, EPA announced over $105 million for the selectees of the historic SWIFR grants for states and communities. These improvements support a circular economy and help lower greenhouse gas emissions, while rebuilding our nation’s infrastructure, powered by well-paying jobs that don’t require four-year degrees.

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Congressman Greg Casar represents Texas’s 35th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives, which runs down I-35 from East Austin to Hays County to the West Side of San Antonio.  A labor organizer and son of Mexican immigrants, Casar serves as the Whip of the Congressional Progressive Caucus for the 118th Congress. He also serves on the Committee on Oversight and Accountability and the Committee on Agriculture.