Fairfax County Public Schools' Recycling Program

FCPS Supports recycling!

Recycling Dashboards

It’s a new year, and Get2Green has a new recycling dashboard featuring trash and recycling data for FCPS overall and for each school. There is also a top recyclers dashboard so you can see how your school’s data stacks up against your neighbors.

FCPS supports recycling! As citizens of the earth and stewards of our environment, we recognize that recycling has many benefits to our community. Our recycling program serves several purposes:

  • Contribute to a cleaner environment
  • Educate students on the benefits of recycling
  • Divert materials from the waste stream
  • Generate financial savings from reduced waste disposal

FCPS follows a single stream recycling process.  Single-stream recycling (also known as “fully commingled” or "single-sort") recycling refers to a system in which all paper fibers, plastics, metals, and other containers are mixed in a collection dumpster, instead of being sorted by the depositor into separate commodities (newspaperpaperboardcorrugated fiberboardplasticglass, etc.) and handled separately throughout the collection process. In single-stream recycling, both the collection and processing systems are designed to handle this fully commingled mixture of recyclables, with materials being separated for reuse at a recycling facility.

The program to recycle paper, cardboard, glass, plastic bottles, and metal is a school-based effort in which all staff and students are required to participate. The recycling of fluorescent lamps is a program that can only be enacted by the custodial staff and trained staff members in the Office of Procurement Services. The School Board regulation requiring all facilities to recycle is Regulation 8541.