Highlights and Lowlights:

• Top of the Waste-Management Heap: The North swept our ranking this year. States in upper latitudes claimed nine of our top 10 spots. Connecticut finished first overall. Minnesota (No. 9) represents the Midwest, while Washington brings honor to the West Coast at No. 10. 
  
  Each of these states ranked in the top 10 of our “Policies” category — apart from Iowa at No. 14 — and in the top 15 of our “Waste” metrics, showing their policies work. Many of these Northern states also are leading recyclers and trailblazers of the Pay-As-You-Throw program.

• Down in the Dumps: In contrast with our top 10 states, there’s no clear regional pattern among our worst 10 performers, with Alaska in last place overall. Other states at the bottom include Nevada (No. 49), Kentucky (No. 45), and West Virginia (No. 42). Among the worst five, the West fared slightly worse, making up 80% of the states.
  
  Each state ranked poorly across all categories, with a couple of exceptions. In the “Waste” category, Kansas ranked 10th, owing to its excellent management of food waste. Meanwhile, Alaska landed at No. 18 in the same category, thanks to its great performance in two out of four factors: tonnage of landfilled waste and RSEI Score.

Our full ranking and analysis are available here: https://www.lawnstarter.com/blog/studies/best-worst-states-waste-management/