AI exposure by occupation, O*NET 53-1042.01
Will AI replace Recycling Coordinators?
Recycling Coordinators: AI can already handle 2 of 23 tasks; most of the work is hands-on, and the part AI can address mostly needs a frontier-tier model.
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Every task, scored
The 23 tasks O*NET 30.3 lists for Recycling Coordinators, from most to least exposed. 2 reach 60 or more, the level at which AI already handles a task.
| Task | AI exposure | Evidence | Model tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| Operate recycling processing equipment, such as sorters, balers, crushers, and granulators to sort and process materials. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Review customer requests for service to determine service needs and deploy appropriate resources to provide service. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Coordinate shipments of recycling materials with shipping brokers or processing companies. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Coordinate recycling collection schedules to optimize service and efficiency. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Develop community or corporate recycling plans and goals to minimize waste and conform to resource constraints. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Design community solid and hazardous waste management programs. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Negotiate contracts with waste management or other firms. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Provide training to recycling technicians or community service workers on topics such as safety, solid waste processing, or general recycling operations. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Maintain logs of recycling materials received or shipped to processing companies. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Inspect physical condition of recycling or hazardous waste facility for compliance with safety, quality, and service standards. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Oversee recycling pick-up or drop-off programs to ensure compliance with community ordinances. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Create or manage recycling operations budgets. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Prepare bills of lading, statements of shipping records, or customer receipts related to recycling or hazardous material services. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Supervise recycling technicians, community service workers, or other recycling operations employees or volunteers. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Schedule movement of recycling materials into and out of storage areas. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Oversee campaigns to promote recycling or waste reduction programs in communities or private companies. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Prepare grant applications to fund recycling programs or program enhancements. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Identify or investigate new opportunities for materials to be collected and recycled. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Investigate violations of solid waste or recycling ordinances. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Implement grant-funded projects, monitoring and reporting progress in accordance with sponsoring agency requirements. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Make presentations to educate the public on how to recycle or on the environmental advantages of recycling. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Assign truck drivers or recycling technicians to routes. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Operate fork lifts, skid loaders, or trucks to move or store recyclable materials. | Estimated | No tier |
Observed: scored from AI use recorded in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), 0 of 23 tasks. Estimated: scored from the task's O*NET 30.3 work activity, 23 of 23. Importance is O*NET's 1 to 5 rating of how central the task is. Model tier is the lowest tier that can do the task under the published rubric; "No tier" marks hands-on work.
The model tier this role needs
A frontier-tier model or lower covers 44% of the role's importance-weighted task work. 44% of the work is something AI can address at some tier, and 56% is hands-on.
Efficient, standard and frontier tiers come from the JobRoute model tier reference. The recommended tier is the lowest one that covers 80% of the work AI can address. How the method works.
Wages, employment and outlook
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2025) publishes no national employment or wage figure for this O*NET occupation.
Adjacent roles
The occupations that reuse the most of this role's skills, with the usual time to move. These are the first places to look when you plan to redeploy or retrain people in this role.
- Refuse and Recyclable Material Collectors 73% skill overlap, about 10 months to move Exposure15
- Recycling and Reclamation Workers 72% skill overlap, about 10 months to move Exposure44
- Sustainability Specialists 58% skill overlap, about 15 months to move Exposure60
- First-Line Supervisors of Material-Moving Machine and Vehicle Operators 57% skill overlap, about 15 months to move Exposure34
- Fitness and Wellness Coordinators 56% skill overlap, about 16 months to move Exposure58
Skill overlap and transition time from the JobRoute role adjacency graph on O*NET 30.3 skills.
Questions about Recycling Coordinators and AI
Will AI replace Recycling Coordinators?
AI already handles 2 of the 23 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation, at a task exposure of 60 or more, and the role's importance-weighted exposure is 28 out of 100. JobRoute scores tasks, not whole jobs, so the score shows how much of the work changes rather than whether the job disappears.
What is the AI exposure of Recycling Coordinators?
28 out of 100 on JobRoute's task exposure measure, the importance-weighted average of the role's O*NET task scores. Higher means more of the work is AI-doable today. 0 of the 23 task scores are observed in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), and the other 23 are estimated from each task's O*NET work activity.
Which Recycling Coordinators tasks can AI already do?
The tasks with the highest exposure are: Operate recycling processing equipment, such as sorters, balers, crushers, and granulators to sort and process materials; Review customer requests for service to determine service needs and deploy appropriate resources to provide service. They are the tasks that reach 60 or more.
What AI model tier does this role need?
A frontier-tier model or lower covers 44% of the role's importance-weighted task work, and 56% is hands-on work that no model tier covers. JobRoute assigns each task the lowest tier that can do it under a published rubric and recommends the lowest tier that covers 80% of the work AI can address.
How to cite
Data version 2026-11-02, JobRoute method v1.0.0. Download all occupations or this occupation as JSON. Methodology.
JobRoute (2026). AI exposure: Recycling Coordinators. Data version 2026-11-02, method v1.0.0. Built on O*NET 30.3, BLS OEWS May 2025 and the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026). CC BY 4.0. https://www.jobroute.ai/jobs/recycling-coordinators
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