Mayor challenges city’s residents, businesses to reduce waste 

Ken McClure: Springfield can do better when it comes to waste management. 

Springfield Mayor Ken McClure today announced a community challenge for residents, businesses and organizations to pledge to a cleaner Springfield. 

McClure’s challenge took the form of a proclamation signed this morning. It states, “Responsible waste management, including proper trash disposal, increased recycling and the diversion of waste, is vital to protecting our natural resources, preserving our community’s beauty and reducing our impact on landfills.” 

The proclamation encourages residents and businesses to embrace the challenge, suggesting what it calls simple steps, like volunteering for litter pick-up opportunities, sorting recyclables properly, composting organic waste material, reducing single-use plastic and participating in cleanup and recycling events. 

“I think we can do better,” McClure said. “What that looks like – I’m not really well versed enough to say what the best solution is, but we can do better.” 

He noted that waste haulers, like many other businesses, have experienced work shortages, and the city has received complaints about trash not being picked up for several days. 

“I think it’s a good time to look at it, and I’m supportive of doing that. What the best solution is, I think we have yet to determine,” he said. 

City staff met with haulers yesterday, according to spokesperson Cora Scott, who noted that they are part of an ongoing conversation about improvements. 

Ashley Krug, market development coordinator for the city’s Department of Environmental Services, noted another point of urgency when it comes to improving the city’s recycling practices, and that is the need to extend the life of the Noble Hill Sanitary Landfill. 

The facility was granted an expansion in 2019, she said. 

“Back in 2019, when we got that expansion, it was going to give our landfill about a hundred years of life,” she said. “Just six years later, we’ve actually shrunk that down to anywhere between 50 and 75 years because of that tonnage increasing so much – we’re seeing so much waste going in there.” 

Springfield City Council additionally voted in November to declare the intent of the city to issue $35 million in special obligation bonds for an expansion to the landfill, according to past reporting. 

Scott added that the mayor’s proclamation is intentionally broad. 

“We know that businesses, community and nonprofits will come forward with ideas for how to address this challenge,” she said. “We didn’t want to be very prescriptive. … We want to know what the community thinks.” 

Scott said events like the FIFA World Cup, with games scheduled in Kansas City, and the centennial of Route 66, will bring more people to Springfield in 2026. These are among the reasons that it’s important for the city to “green up” over the next year, she said.