There are typically two ways we get rid of our garbage: burning it or burying it.
Now, Miami-Dade County is seeking creative new ways to handle waste and the growing, staggeringly expensive problems of how to dispose of it. And there is money to bankroll the best ideas.
The county announced in a contest on Tuesday that it will pay at least three early-to growth-stage startup businesses $100,000 to jump-start projects that encourage better recycling, more organic waste disposal and community education on how to properly sort trash. Currently, nearly 40 percent of the county’s recycled waste stream is contaminated, according to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP).
“We want to create opportunities for companies that traditionally do not have an entry point into working with large municipalities like Miami Dade” said Leigh-Ann Buchanan, the president and CEO of the Miami-Dade Innovation Authority, which is hosting the contest. “If we’re able to use technology and innovation to improve the efficiency of how we manage waste in the county, what that could ultimately translate to is reducing the cost born by residents.”
This comes at a time when the county is wrestling with a landfill that’s filling up and receiving pushback for a proposal to build a new incinerator estimated to cost $1.5 billion. Environmentalists worry about impacts on water quality in the Everglades. Residents don’t want the smell. Even President Donald Trump’s son, Eric, spoke out about wanting it nowhere near his new condo complex or the family’s golf course. Miami-Dade Mayor Danielle Levine Cava told the Miami Herald editorial board that garbage is an “existential crisis” for the county.
“The incinerator is just an indicator of the urgent need to think about more innovative ways to address the problem,” Buchanan said.
Some examples of solutions they’re looking for include phone apps that could help residents sort their waste, analytics programs that share where our waste ends up, and any other solutions that divert organic waste from landfills. Doing that can reduce methane emissions from rotting garbage in landfills, which can worsen climate change.
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Companies applying are asked to have an existing product that’s legal, and ready to be tested and validated with the Solid Waste Department.
Aneisha Daniel, the director of Solid Waste, said while their contracts allow for all of Miami’s trash to be disposed of – mostly by putting it on trains and sending it north — those prices could be raised in the county within the next contract renewal in 10 years.
“We’re hopeful that the pilot is something that could be scale-able in the future, that will allow us to divert the amount of waste that’s going to our landfill,” Daniel said.
This is the fifth innovation challenge the county has launched and the first in collaboration with the Solid Waste Department. Other innovation projects in the works include making use of the seaweed that collects on beaches and costs the county millions to remove and improve the passenger experiences at the airport.
The multistage interview process is predicted to take about six months before the Miami-Dade Innovation Authority announces the winner. Winning companies can use the MDIA investment for whatever they believe will help them succeed at passing a publicly facilitated test on their product. Winners are required to give updates on progress to MDIA.
To apply, visit the MDIA’s website for the waste challenge and apply by Monday, April 21.
Ashley Miznazi is a climate change reporter for the Miami Herald funded by the Lynn and Louis Wolfson II Family Foundation in partnership with Journalism Funding Partners.
This story was produced in partnership with the Florida Climate Reporting Network, a multi-newsroom initiative founded by the Miami Herald, the South Florida Sun Sentinel, The Palm Beach Post, the Orlando Sentinel, WLRN Public Media and the Tampa Bay Times.
This story was originally published March 12, 2025 at 9:32 AM.
