Salt River Project Diverts 500 Tons of Utility Poles from Landfills
Watch a Video of SRP's Poles Being Prepared for Transport for Recycling
Salt River Project (SRP) has recycled more than 500 tons of previously unrecyclable wooden utility poles, successfully diverting them from Arizona landfills.
The poles, which are used to support overhead power lines, are treated with preservatives to increase their durability. This makes them difficult to process through traditional recycling methods.
In 2024, SRP partnered with Blackwood Solutions, a recycling company committed to finding sustainable solutions for wood and concrete products, to recycle weathered wood poles.
Now, instead of sending the poles to landfills after they are decommissioned, typically after 30 years of use, SRP’s utility poles are stripped of any existing wires and cables and transported to New Mexico and repurposed. The poles are used for building structures like fences, pole barns, retaining walls, shooting stops and small bridges. Poles are also used to line trails and driveways.
“SRP’s utility poles are very durable, which presented a significant opportunity to make progress on our waste reduction and diversion goal,” said Jeff Shaver, investment recovery analyst, SRP. “We are proud to be the first Arizona utility to recycle our wooden utility poles and keep hundreds — potentially even thousands — of tons of poles out of landfills.”
This milestone supports SRP’s 2035 Sustainability Goals, which include a goal to divert 95% of its industrial waste from landfills by 2035 and to achieve zero industrial landfill waste by 2050.
Pole recycling is one of several waste reduction initiatives at SRP. Other projects include the conversion of previously unrecyclable electric cable jacketing as an additive into concrete; composting paper towels at SRP facilities and adding circularity to wood cable reels by sending them back to the manufacturer to be respooled.
SRP’s ambitious 2035 Sustainability Goals focus on reducing SRP’s carbon footprint, ensuring a resilient water supply, further evolving SRP’s grid and customer energy solutions, supporting a more sustainable supply chain, reducing waste across its facilities and engaging SRP’s customers and community.