2002 Annual Report: Waste Prevention and Market Development

On this page...

• Recycling Business Loans
• Reuse Assistance Grants
• Sustainable Building Executive Order
• Green Building
• Waste Reduction Program
• State Agency Buy Recycled Campaign
• Recycled Product Trade Show
• Environmentally Preferred Purchasing (EPP)
• Rigid Plastic Packaging Containers
• Plastics White Paper
• Plastic Trash Bags

Recycling Business Loans
During 2002, the Board funded recycling market development (RMDZ) loans to seven recycling businesses totaling $6.3 million. These loans diverted an additional 280,000 tons of solid waste from California landfills annually and created 117 jobs. Approximately $3.5 million remained available in the Board’s 2002-03 budget for new RMDZ loans. In addition, the Board approved four tire fund loans totaling $2.7 million to tire recycling businesses to divert an additional 8,700 tons of tires from California landfills annually and create 20 jobs.

Reuse Assistance Grants
Reuse Assistance Grants provide incentives to local public agencies to promote and apply the concept of reuse to their business communities. In early 2002, the Board announced the award of up to $250,000 in third grant cycle funds among 20 applications submitted in November 2001. The funds were awarded from the Board’s fiscal year 2001-02 budget.

Sustainable Building Executive Order
Executive Order D-16-00, the Governor's Sustainable Building Executive Order, established a goal for State agencies to site, design, deconstruct, construct, renovate, operate, and maintain State buildings. The buildings are expected to be models of energy, water, and materials efficiency while providing healthy, productive, and comfortable indoor environments and long-term benefits to Californians. In response to this goal, Building Better Buildings: A Blueprint for Sustainable State Facilities was prepared by the interdisciplinary sustainable building task force to implement the executive order. The Blueprint was approved by the Governor’s Office in 2001 and continues to be implemented through various actions.

In 2002, the Board continued to help implement the order throughout State government offices, relying on the Blueprint for direction.

The Blueprint demonstrates a strong commitment to architectural sustainability and advances many goals of the Board and Cal/EPA. These include greater use of recycled-content products and more efficient use of construction and demolition materials. Other goals include better landscaping designs that require less water and fewer pesticides; and those that incorporate mulches and compost, improved indoor air quality, and greater energy efficiency.

The Board plays a vital role in this effort by updating the Sustainable Building Task Force Web site as new information became available, and by implementing specific Blueprint recommendations. Completed action items in 2002 included the following tasks:

• Conducted training sessions for the Department of General Services (DGS) and other State entities with more than 1,400 people trained.
• Developed the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Supplement for California State Facilities (performance standards) and a best practices manual for schools (through the Collaborative for High Performance Schools standards).
• Developed reference specifications for State buildings incorporating environmental performance standards.
• Developed a checklist of Department of Finance-approved green building features included with each DGS architecture and engineering contract for new construction.
• Encouraged the inclusion of sustainable building design and materials into affordable housing.
• Formed a relocatable working group to improve the quality of portable classrooms design, construction, and operation.
• Initiated collaborative sustainable building efforts with higher education, including a conference at the University of California, Merced.

Green Building
Green buildings are an environmentally conscientious approach embraced by knowledgeable parties-including the Board-who concede the time is ripe for such architectural innovation. With Board approval in 2002, $550,000 was made available to provide green building contracts and technical assistance to local government and State agencies. These funds advance sustainable building concepts and products and the incorporation of used and waste tires in building and educational projects throughout the state. Additional funding of $275,000 was made available to one local government and State agency for the incorporation of waste and used tires into their respective projects during the May tire reallocation. In fiscal year 2002-03 another round of funding was appropriated for $400,000. Those funds were provided to a high-performance demonstration school, a State agency, and a technical assistance contract.

Waste Reduction Program
Entering its 10th year in 2002, the Board’s Waste Reduction Awards Program (WRAP) heralded in a new phase, recognizing companies that go beyond adopting a recycling program. While still intent on increasing the number of businesses applying for the program, the new WRAP emphasis focused on enhancing the quality of information secured through the application and the programs being featured.

In 2002, WRAP celebrated the immense voluntary efforts private businesses make towards local diversion goals by recognizing 2,152 outstanding California businesses. In addition, the Board’s “WRAP of the Year” award honors the waste management efforts of 10 outstanding businesses selected from the annual WRAP winners.

The WRAP competition is open to private industry and nonprofit organizations. More than 8,700 WRAP honors have been awarded since the program’s start in 1993. Many companies have won the award multiple times.

State Agency Buy Recycled Campaign
State Agency Buy Recycled Campaign (SABRC) is a joint effort between the Board and DGS to implement California law requiring State agencies and the Legislature to purchase products with recycled content. Each year, agencies report their recycled-content purchases to the Board. Reports for fiscal year 2001-02 show $233.4 million in total reportable purchases, of which $182.6 million was spent on recycled-content products (RCP). The number of State agencies reporting increased to 83 percent, compared to 76 percent for fiscal year 2000-01. That increase in total number of agencies reporting can be credited to the Board’s comprehensive SABRC training and outreach efforts. Because of these accomplishments by SABRC staff, State agencies are successful in implementing recycled-content product procurement practices within their day-to-day operations.

The Board will continue to increase outreach efforts to State agencies with the dual goals of improving reporting and increasing RCP procurement. Additionally, the Board will look to DGS for an increase in the number of RCPs available on statewide procurement contracts. Other goals include increased use of the recycled-content certification form and increased SABRC presence in DGS training, outreach, Web site, and promotional activities and publications.

Recycled Product Trade Show
The Third Annual Recycled Product Trade Show in 2002 at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim was another huge success. This premiere event continues to attract State agency, local government, and private sector procurement personnel to learn about RCPs. Exhibitors indicated that direct sales could be attributed to previous shows. The Board is currently ensuring that the Fourth Annual Recycled Product Trade Show will be another strong show. Presently, there are 102 companies with 112 booth spaces exhibiting, 1,200 people are pre-registered, plus 250 booth personnel.

Intended to link the power of public agency purchasing programs to RCP suppliers, the trade show can increase RCP procurement and help strengthen markets for secondary materials diverted in California's local jurisdictions.

Environmentally Preferred Purchasing (EPP)
In partnership with DGS and other State agency stakeholders, the Board is establishing a program to provide State agencies with information and assistance regarding environmentally preferred purchasing (EPP). As a member of the multi-agency EPP task force, the Board will assist in developing an EPP best practices manual for State purchasing employees.

Implementation of AB 498, Chan (Chapter 575, Statutes of 2002) requires State agencies to procure goods and services that have a reduced effect on human health and the environment in comparison to competing goods or services that serve the same purpose. Increased emphasis on EPP requires that the Board-DGS partnership evaluate all environmental aspects of the State’s purchasing programs to ensure they are consistent with achieving preferred purchasing goals.

The Board continues to coordinate EPP efforts with other federal, State, and local entities; institutions of higher education; industry; and public health and environmental organizations interested in EPP. These efforts will include green lodging for employees while on state business and the development of a Green Carpet Specification.

Rigid Plastic Packaging Containers
The Rigid Plastic Packaging Container (RPPC) law has had a positive effect on the use of postconsumer resins in the production of RPPCs intended for sale in California. As a result of the three compliance certifications the Board has conducted for the calendar years 1996, 1997-99, and 2000, approximately 1,500 product manufacturers have been certified throughout the United States. The requests for compliance certifications resulted in an awareness of the law and, in most cases, compliance with the law. The Board is preparing to initiate a certification cycle for the year 2001.

In regard to current certification cycles, the majority of product manufacturers were found to be in compliance with the law. Product manufacturers determined to be out of compliance were offered one-year compliance agreements, which required the companies to take specific action to come into compliance and demonstrate at least six months of being in compliance by the end of their one-year agreement. At this time, 144 companies have entered into compliance agreements; 45 of those companies have come into compliance by the end of their one-year agreement, and 9 have had their agreements extended to continue efforts to achieve compliance. The 45 companies that came into compliance during their one-year agreement used more than 70 tons of postconsumer resin and reduced total resin usage by 214 tons for the reported compliance periods.

Plastics White Paper
The Plastics White Paper Report presents a comprehensive view of plastics, examines existing State policies, and presents options for Board and Department of Conservation consideration. A separate draft Report to the Legislature Regarding Polystyrene Use and Disposal in California (Polystyrene Report) pursuant to Chapter 406, Statutes of 2001 (SB 1127, Karnette) is also being developed.

The Board has had several programs that target specific plastic products. The Plastics White Paper Report describes in detail issues the Board faces with diversion and recycling of plastics and possible new courses of action.

Plastic Trash Bags
Staff initiated a much-expanded plastic trash bag certification for 2002 using information obtained from marketplace surveys. They also used information from DGS on companies interested in bidding on State trash bag contracts. Certification forms were mailed to approximately 350 plastic trash bag wholesalers and manufacturers. Manufacturers and wholesalers must certify to the Board that either the bags they make contain at least 10 percent recycled content, or they must disclose the total number and tons of regulated bags they sell and from what location. The Board is in the process of completing the 2002 certification and will post a list of compliant companies on its Web site by July 2003.

2002 Annual Report Home | Next Section>>>