Richard Anthony Zero Waste San Diego San Diego February 24 , 2010 Zero Waste Plans Richard Anthony Zero Waste San Diego San Diego February 24 , 2010

Zero Waste A Policy, Path, Direction A Target, Process, Way Of Thinking Recognizes 71 Tons “Upstream” For Every Ton MSW From Waste Mgt. To Resource Mgt. Stops Climate Change as landfills are one of largest sources of Greenhouse Gases Wasteberg

The only peer-reviewed internationally accepted definition of Zero Waste is that adopted by the Zero Waste International Alliance: “Zero Waste is a goal that is ethical, economical, efficient and visionary, to guide people in changing their lifestyles and practices to emulate sustainable natural cycles, where all discarded materials are designed to become resources for others to use. Zero Waste means designing and managing products and processes to systematically avoid and eliminate the volume and toxicity of waste and materials, conserve and recover all resources, and not burn or bury them. Implementing Zero Waste will eliminate all discharges to land, water or air that are a threat to planetary, human, animal or plant health.”

  “If a product can't be reused, repaired, rebuilt, refurbished, refinished, resold, recycled or composted, then it should be restricted, redesigned, or removed from production.”*   *Martin Bourque, Berkeley Ecology Center, GRRN Zero Waste Conference, NY, April 2005.

Upstream Reduce volume and toxicity of raw materials and manufactured products Rethink and redesign products and processes to reduce wasting and planned obsolescence Embodied energy savings (upstream) are greater than energy produced Businesses can adopt policies and make vendors comply

Downstream Ensure the highest and best use of products and packaging at the end of their useful lives Reuse products and packaging, retaining their original form and function Recycle materials that are not reduced or reused Compost materials that are not recycled

ZW Business Principles Commitment to the triple bottom line Use Precautionary Principle Zero Waste to landfill or incineration Responsibility: Take back products & packaging Buy reused, recycled & compost Prevention pollution and reduce waste Highest and best use Use economic incentives for customers, workers and suppliers Products or services sold are not wasteful or toxic Use non-toxic production, reuse and recycling processes

Reuse, Recycling, & Composting Reduce Resource Use & Greenhouse Gas Production Aluminum Steel Paper Glass Energy Use 90-97% 47-74% 23-74% 4-32% Air Pollution 95% 85% 74% 20% Water Pollution 97% 76% 35% Mining Wastes 80% Water Use 40% 58% 50% [1] R. Letcher and M. Shiel, “Source separation and Citizen Recycling”, in William Robinson, ed., The Solid Waste Handbook, New York, 1986.

All discards can be sorted into 12 Market Categories… 1. REUSABLE Appliances Durable Plastic Items Textiles Mattresses & Furniture Composite C & D Books & Catalogues Other Repairables 2. PAPER Cardboard White Ledger Newsprint Magazines / Catalogs Other Office Paper Paperboard Other / Composite Paper 3. PLANT DEBRIS Leaves & Grass Prunings Branches & Stumps PUTRESCIBLES Food Waste Fish and Meat Waste Sewage Sludge WOOD Untreated Wood Treated Wood CERAMICS Concrete Asphalt Paving

10. TEXTILES 7. SOILS 11. POLYMERS 8. METALS 9. GLASS 12. CHEMICALS Poly Fibers Cotton and Wool 11. POLYMERS #1 PET #2 HDPE #3 - 7 Tires Asphalt Roofing 12. CHEMICALS Used Motor Oil Paint Household Hazardous Products Medicine Sharps Batteries and Lights 7. SOILS Gypsum Board Fines 8. METALS Auto Bodies Aluminum Cans Steel Cans Ferrous Metals Non-Ferrous 9. GLASS Clear Glass Containers Mixed Glass Containers Clear Glass Green Glass Mixed Glass Brown Glass Window Glass Other Glass

Discards Sorted into the 12 Market Categories Note: Half of the Pie is Organic Material Suitable for Composting Metals 6% Glass 3% Paper 37% Wood 4% Soils 1% Textiles Ceramics 2% Chemicals 0% Reuse Polymers 11% Putrescibles 19% Plant Debris 10%

Total Value of Discards ($) Revenue and Job Potential from 1,000,000 Tons of Discarded Material Clean DozenSM Master Categories Jobs Tons per Year Market Price $/T (est.) Total Value of Discards ($) 1. Reuse 350 28,000 550 15,400,000 2. Paper 65 370,000 20 7,400,000 3. Plant Trimmings 30 100,000 7 700,000 4. Putrescibles 85 190,000 1,330,000 5. Wood 24 40,000 4 320,000 6. Ceramics 20,000 80,000 7. Soils 10,000 70,000 8. Metals 35 60,000 40 2,400,000 9. Glass 75 30,000 10 300,000 10. Polymers 1,020 110,000 100 11,000,000 11. Textiles 340 200 8,000,000 12. Chemicals 2,000 15 Total 2,055 1,000,000 47,030,000

Setting Up Zero Waste Programs Get top management on board Examine the current system of discard management Get everyone involved in making the plan Let every one know what you are doing

1. Adopt ZWIA Zero Waste definition 2. Establish benchmarks and a timeline to meet goals for measuring success and monitoring accomplishments A key part of the planning process is establishing goals and targets that start with the Board and top management 3. Engage the whole company. Don’t leave Zero Waste to “waste experts.” Involve all agencies and departments, existing vendors and resource markets. Challenge all to pursue Zero Waste at work. .

5. Educate employees and vendors about the new rules & programs 4. Use fees levied on tons of waste hauled or landfilled to fund programs 5. Educate employees and vendors about the new rules & programs Zero Waste is a strategy not a technology that aims for better organization, better education and better industrial design to achieve the cultural change needed to get to Zero Waste 6. Perform Zero Waste Assessments ID amount and type of discards produced Collect Data by generation points Use as baseline to ID recovery and employment opportunities, cost savings, and to measure success of reduction and recovery programs

7. Residual Separation & Research Facilities Residuals need to be made very visible to ID Bad industrial design Bad purchasing habits Change through dedicated research and education 8. Develop New Rules and Incentives to move towards Zero Waste new policies, new rules and new incentives. Restructure contracts and policies to make the avoided costs of collection and disposal a key engine for moving towards Zero Waste. 9. Enact Extended Producer Responsibility Businesses take back products and packaging at no cost Advocate for state and national EPR policies redesign products to be less toxic and easier to reuse and recycle  

10. Support Zero Waste Procurement Adopt Precautionary Principle for municipal purchases Purchase Zero Waste products and services Avoid single use products and packaging Return to vendors wasteful packaging Reduce packaging and buy in larger units Use reusable shipping containers Purchase reused, recycled and compost products Buy remanufactured equipment Lease, rent and share equipment Buy durables (using life-cycle cost analyses) Encourage businesses and institutions to follow as well

11. Expand Zero Waste Infrastructure Develop locations for reuse, recycling and composting, including Resource Recovery Parks. 12. Challenge Employees to lead the way to Zero Waste

Zero Waste San Diego Ricanthony@aol.com www.zerowastesandiego.org Twitter: zerowastesd Be our Fan on Facebook