Beyond 50% Recycling: Toward a Zero Waste Economy Institute for Local Self-Reliance

How to Get There Reduce & Reuse Recycle Compost (food discards too!) Collect Process & Market Make New Products from the Old Buy Reused, Recycled, Green Implement Institutional Framework (policies, laws, incentives) Residential & Commercial Sectors Institute for Local Self-Reliance

Community Record-Setters CommunityPop. Waste Type Reduction Chatham, NJ8,00065% Res.Suburban Falls Church, VA9,80065% Res.Suburban Bellevue, WA104,00060% Res.Suburban/Urban Leverett, MA2,00055% Res.Rural Loveland, CO43,00056% Res.Urban Worcester, MA165,40052% Res.Urban Crockett, TX8,30052% Res.Small Rural City Madison, WI199,50049% Res.Urban Visalia, CA91,30048% Res.Urban San Jose, CA819,40044% MSWUrban Institute for Local Self-Reliance

Institutional/Commercial Waste Reduction Record-Setters CommunityICW Waste Reduction Bergen County, NJ62% Clifton, NJ68% Portland, OR47% San Jose, CA42% Seattle, WA52% ICW = institutional/commercial waste Institute for Local Self-Reliance

Keys to Record-Setters Accept many materials Compost Mandate recycling Institute pay-as-you-throw trash fees Target all sectors Augment curbside with drop-off Educate, educate, educate Market materials Institute for Local Self-Reliance

Institutional Framework Landfill bans Recycling goals and requirements Bottle bills Recycled-content laws Creative funding mechanisms Buy recycled programs Pay-as-you-throw trash fees Institute for Local Self-Reliance

Food Discard Waste Reduction Record-Setters Organization, Location % of Food Discards Recovered Del Mar Fairgrounds, CA75% Fletcher Allen Health Care, VT90% Frost Valley YMCA, NY100% Larry’s Markets, WA90% Green Workplace, Govt. of Ontario70% Middlebury College, VT75% NY State Prisons, NY90% Shop Rite Supermarkets, NJ90% Institute for Local Self-Reliance

Reusable Items in the Waste Stream Reusable ItemsPercent of Discarded Municipal Solid Waste Durable Goods*16.4% Textiles (MSW) 3.3% Wooden Pallets3.6% *Appliances, furniture, furnishings, carpets, tires, electronics, luggage, sporting equipment, and the like Institute for Local Self-Reliance

Reusable Items Discarded and Recovered Reusable Items1000s TPY 1000s TPY% DiscardedRecoveredRecovered Durable Goods*37,6306, % Electronics2, % Textiles (MSW)7,6101, % Wooden Pallets8,1701, % *Appliances, furniture, furnishings, carpets, tires, electronics, luggage, sporting equipment, and the like Institute for Local Self-Reliance

Strategies to Promote Reuse Implement drop-off and curbside programs Salvage at landfills & transfer stations Educate Disseminate reuse directories Develop reuse enterprises Target business community Partner with local charities Include reuse in solid waste plans/studies Ban specific items from disposal Be creative Institute for Local Self-Reliance

Select Reuse Programs ProgramType Calaveres Co., CA*Salvation Army drop-off site at landfill Calvert Co., MD*Drop-offs, pick-up from charities Chatham Co., NC*Swap Shops at drop-offs St. Paul, MN*Curbside collection, Goodwill processing Montgomery Co., MD*Drop-off, pick-up programs, directory L.A. Shares, CA*Reuse showroom, pick-up service, Web Materials for the ArtsReuse showroom, pick-up service Surplus Exchange, MOReuse showroom, pick-up service Recycletown, CARetail store, drop-off at landfill ReStore, VTRetail store, pick-up, drop-off Urban Ore, CARetail store, drop-off, pick-up, salvage *local charities served by program Institute for Local Self-Reliance

Job Creation: Reuse Vs. Recycling and Disposal Type of OperationJobs/ 10,000 TPY Computer Reuse296 Textile Reclamation85 Misc. Durables Reuse62 Wooden Pallet Repair28 Recycling-Based Manufacturers25 Conventional MRFs10 Disposal Facilities1 Institute for Local Self-Reliance

Building the Infrastructure Build eco-industrial parks Require product deposits Establish landfill and incinerator surcharges Expand buy recycled programs Ban products and packaging that cannot be reused, recycled, or composted Ban recyclable and reusable materials/products from landfills/incinerators Retain control of materials