Virginia's recycling rate - 1999 to 2018

Key Figures

46% is the statewide recycling rate in 2018
59% is the highest recycling rate recorded in the Central Virginia Waste Management Authority
29% is the lowest rate recorded in the Virginia Peninsulas Public Service Authority
From 38% in 2016 to 57% in 2018 is the biggest improvement in recycling in recent years recorded in the city of Newport News

Virginia recycled almost half of its trash in 2018, setting a record despite Chinaâ€™s ban on importing plastic and other solid waste.

Virginia recycled almost half of its trash in 2018, setting a record despite China’s ban on importing plastic and other solid waste. The statewide recycling rate in 2018 was 46% — up 3 percentage points from the previous year, according to data released this week by the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality.

Yearly recycling rate

Year	Rate(%)
1991	19.7
1993	33.4
1995	35
2000	32.9
2001	37.8
2002	36.8
2003	30.3
2004	29.8
2005	32.2
2006	38.4
2007	38.5
2008	38.5
2009	38.6
2010	40.5
2011	43.5
2012	41.5
2013	41.2
2014	42.5
2015	44.2
2016	42.6
2017	42.8
2018	46

Each area's recycling rate

Areas	Rate (%)
Alexandria	48
Arlington County	50
Staunton-Waynesboro area	34
Central Virginia	59
Fairfax County	50
Loudoun County	34
Montgomery County	34
Newport News	57
Shenandoah Valley	49
Prince William County	35
Stafford County and Fredericksburg	39
Lynchburg area	38
Tidewater	50
Spotsylvania County	33
Charlottesville area	37
Hampton-Williamsburg area	29
Statewide average	46