Trash Troubles

The 2020 Super Bowl in Miami Gardens generated about 80,000 pounds of trash. With seven games set to take place at the Hard Rock Stadium in the 2026 FIFA World Cup next month, at a time when Miami-Dade is already dealing with a trash crisis, environmentalists want to try to minimize the impact.

Since a waste-to-energy facility in Doral burned down in 2023, Miami-Dade has been shipping much of its trash north. It’s an expensive short-term fix for taxpayers as the county struggles to find a local solution. And in St. Lucie County, where the trash is put into trains to be shipped to Okeechobee County, it has created quite a stink.

A resolution on the Feb. 18 agenda looks to improve the county's waste planning after the devastating 2023 Covanta trash fire.

Recyclepedia has created an interactive map of the county in which users can see if and how different materials can be recycled.