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Our Goal: Where are we now? • National Landfill Diversion Rate: 34% • San Francisco’s Diversion Rate: 80% • SF still sends 1400 tons to the landfill PER DAY • Recycling Rates for 10 Largest U.S. Cities • • • • • • • • • • Los Angeles: 65% San Jose: 60% New York: 55% San Diego: 54.9% Chicago: 52.4% Dallas: 44.6% Philadelphia: 42% Phoenix: 23% Houston: 16.7% San Antonio: 4% • Source:: : Waste & Recycling News (3/2/09) Why Work Toward Zero Waste? Landfills: • Contribute to climate change – 3rd largest source of human-based methane emissions • Contaminate air and ground water • Waste valuable natural resources – Mining, processing , & transportation of virgin material creates air and water pollution and climate change What happens to the stuff you put in the black bin? Black Bin = Landfill Trash The vast majority of office building trash is recyclable or compostable in San Francisco. What happens to the stuff you put in the green bin? Compostables Plastic coffee cup lids and straws can be put in the recycling. Plastic cutlery, lids, and chip bags don’t belong in the compost. Combats Climate Change Compost reduces methane emissions – Cover crops or grasses grown using compost sequester carbon in the soil – Recycling saves energy – • • • 95% of the energy is saved by making aluminum cans from recycled cans instead of virgin ore. 60% of the energy is saved by making paper from recycled paper instead of from virgin materials. 88% of the energy is saved when plastic is made from recycled plastic rather than from the raw materials of gas and oil. Conserves Water • • Agriculture uses 80% of the state’s water Compost can hold twice its weight in water. • The process of recycling paper instead of making it from new materials generates 74 percent less air pollution and uses 50 percent less water. Compost Increases Soil Fertility • Compost is a natural alternative to chemical fertilizers Compost is rich in nitrogen and other nutrients that directly benefit plants. • Earthworms & microorganisms eat the compost. As the particles pass through the bodies of these organisms, the nutrients break down into pieces small enough to feed plant roots. • Compost Collection & Processing Compost is checked for quality, loaded into long haul trucks, and transported to our compost facility in Vacaville (Jepson Prairie Organics) where it actively composts for 4-6 weeks, turning into “black gold”. Compost Contamination Film plastics and glass shards are some of the most problematic contaminants. What happens to the stuff you put in the blue bin? Recyclables Soft plastic items such a bubblewrap envelopes belong in the trash Paper coffee cups should be placed in the compost. Recycling = Jobs •Landfilling and incineration generate the fewest jobs per ton of waste. •10,000 tons sent to landfill= 6 jobs •10,000 tons recycled= 36 jobs •California 75% recycle rate by 2020 would create > 110,000 new recycling jobs: •31% - materials collection •24% - materials processing •45% - manufacturing •38,600+ additional indirect jobs Source: Tellus Institute, 2011 report: More Jobs, Less Pollution: Growing the Recycling Economy in the U.S. Pier 96 - Recycle Central 700 tons of material is processed at Recycle Central every day. • Mechanical & manual separation is used to sort recyclables into individual commodities which are then baled and sent to processing facilities. • Recycling Contamination •Items like plastic bags and rags get caught in the spinning discs of the sorting equipment. •Liquids and food waste contaminates paper and cardboard. Thank You You make it happen. RecologySF.com