Javits Center and RTS Redefine Sustainability at Scale

With over 3.3 million square feet of space—about the size of 60 football fields—the Javits Center in New York City hosts more than 120 events a year, welcoming millions of visitors. That means thousands of tons of waste, from cardboard and electronics to food scraps and plastics, moving through its doors annually. Managing that scale without sacrificing safety, efficiency, or sustainability is no small feat.

Problem

The Javits Center faced a massive challenge: thousands of tons of waste from hundreds of events, often moving through the building in a single day. Each event brings unique waste streams—electronics, hazardous packaging, organic waste, and more—that require specialized handling.

Working with RTS, Javits shifted from reactive cleanup to predictive, data-driven waste management.

On Track to Reach 80% Diversion

As a result of our ongoing partnership with Javits, the diversion rate of waste has increased by 40%, all cardboard and non rigid plastic is baled and diverted, all collected organic waste is diverted and used to generate clean energy for homes in Brooklyn, and single stream recycling, which was previously heavily contaminated, is now clean and consistently diverted for recycling.

Scaling Success Together

Javits and RTS have built a powerful model for sustainable event management, and the journey is far from over.