1. Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design-Existing Buildings (LEED-EB): Operations and Maintenance Waste Stream Audit: Six Steps for conducting a “Dumpster Dive”

2. Inquiring Minds: What is the difference between a Waste Stream Audit and the AB75 Report? Why conduct a Waste Stream Audit? How do you conduct a Waste Characterization? What LEED-EB credits does this “dumpster dive” meet?

3. Synonymous Terminology Waste Characterization (term to describe activity in separating garbage in categories of waste types) Waste Stream Audit (term used in the US Building Green Building Council’s LEED-EB rating system to earn one point under the Materials and Resources category) Dumpster Dive (slang term to describe all of the above)

4. State Organization and Agency Recycling Database (SOARD) vs. Waste Characterization SOARD (AB 75) Report is a percentage = total tonnage recycled total tonnage disposed Waste Characterization is a random look at the refuse that will go to the landfill from a large building’s compactor or “brown can”.

5. Step 1: Have staff hold the garbage one evening. Conduct Waste Characterization during a cool, dry morning outdoors. Designate a Lead Coordinator. Example: The Waste Stream from the Department of Education Building Sacramento, CA ~ Summer of 2006

6. The materials used to conduct the waste categorization: Fish scale to be used to weigh the waste in each bag before and after characterization Plastic gloves, Plastic Sheeting, Large buckets, Heavy duty garbage bags

7. Step 2: Weigh all the garbage in each bag for a total prior to opening and starting characterization

8. Step 3: Pour out the Garbage on the Plastic Sheeting and start separating into buckets and/or bags. Note: Be sure to follow LEED EB outlined waste categories

9. Step 4: Pour the sorted garbage from buckets (if used) to plastic garbage bags and weigh each category of waste. Example: Styrofoam waste bagged and weighed

10. Step 5: Take notes of excess garbage that could be recycled by occupants or staff rather than thrown into the garbage. These will be used in your new policies changes for waste management. Example: Partial rolls of toilet paper were routinely being tossed out by staff.

11. Categorization of the waste products and the crew: 7 people, 4 hours, 1 day of waste from a 421,150 square foot building. Vince Paul, (front right). The coordinator will take all the information and compile it into a table to calculate percentages for each category to identify opportunities for: source reduction and diversion from the waste stream.

12. Step 6: Fill out the table of the categories and calculate the percentages according to the LEED-EB guidelines and letter template. Write up a narrative stating the opportunities for waste diversion. Example of Categories: Newspaper Glass Aluminum Tin/bi-metal High grade paper Mixed paper Corrugated cardboard Plastics Construction/Demolition Scrap Metals Tires Used Motor Oil Auto batteries Leaves Grass Food Waste

13. Goal: What more can we do to move garbage from the “trash can” to the “recycling can”? recycle INSTEAD OF: Garbage to landfill Question to ask: How is trash handled after it is collected? A.Collected and taken to landfill B.Collected as recyclables and sorted C.Collected by a vendor that sorts trash into recyclables vs. landfill

14. Source Reduction How can there be less PUT into the garbage? Can we reuse materials that are really not fully used like binders, paper tablets, paper clips etc.? Can food be composted or otherwise converted to another source? How much money can the facility management save by having less garbage? (answer: LOTS)

15. LEED-EB credits Helps to set the policies on recycling in the building for MR pr2 MRc6 = 1 point to perform a “Waste Stream Audit” during the performance (reporting) period for LEED Identifies areas to improve recycling to increase AB75 percentage for MR c7.1 & 7.2 = up to 2 points

16. Presentation to be posted online at: www.green.ca.gov/GreenBuildings/ExistingBuildingsToolKit April 2008