FDEP tracks progress made by counties across the state on an annual basis. The agency includes a number of factors as credits when establishing a county’s overall recycling rate. Credits, for example, come from “waste-to-energy facilities that burn garbage to produce renewable energy,” Hillsborough officials explained. Both Pinellas and Hillsborough counties own and use their own waste-to-energy facilities that help cut down on the amount of trash that ends up in their landfills.

Other counties across the region have also made great strides toward meeting the goal, FDEP’s website says. Pasco and Sarasota are both tied with recycling rates of 66 percent. Other counties in the region, however, are lagging behind a bit. A county-by-county breakdown of credits can be viewed on the state's website.