Balcones Resources receives San Antonio recycling contract

The San Antonio City Council has approved an ordinance awarding Balcones Resources Inc., headquartered in Austin, Texas, a 15-year municipal recycling contract that will begin Aug. 1, 2024.

Under the terms of the contract, Balcones will build and operate a 200,000-square-foot, $47 million material recovery facility (MRF) and recycling education center in San Antonio. The facility will combine the latest innovations in recycling technology with employee wellness and community engagement programs, according to the company. This will be the Balcones' sixth recycling facility and the fourth in Texas.

“The city of San Antonio has a long history of sustainability and, being one of the fastest-growing municipalities in the country, they had a very clear expectation for the future of their recycling program,” Balcones President Adam Vehik says. “Our goal was to deliver a recycling campus that was without peer anywhere in the country.”

The campus’ MRF will be custom-engineered to prioritize high recycling capture rates, employee safety and quality control, the company says. The MRF will feature the latest technology to ensure Balcones produces the highest-grade materials possible.

“Recycling continues to be a better economic option than the landfill, and our commitment to recovery rates and material quality will have a direct financial benefit to the city of San Antonio,” Vehik says. “We are excited about the environmental and economic impact that the recycling campus will bring to the community.”

Balcones says all recyclables recovered at the MRF will be marketed in North America, prioritizing Texas-based companies.

The company says it will create approximately 70 new full-time environmental jobs in San Antonio to operate the facility. The campus will include a number of on-site resources:

• employee wellness amenities that include integrated walking trails, recreational facilities and a community garden program;
• an interactive viewing gallery and education outreach activities for the community;
• energy-conservation design innovations, including solar panels, passive lighting, native landscaping and electric charging stations; and
• drop-off options for recyclables outside of the city program.