Meet the Board Leadership

Gary Petersen

Gary Petersen is president of Environmental Problem Solving Enterprises, which he founded in 1997. The firm specializes in advancing environment-friendly products and services, including the development of cleaner fuels, emerging green technologies, and sustainable design and development.

He is a national leader on recycling and sustainability issues. As founder and president of Ecolo-Haul Recycling (1972-1988), he built a regional network of nearly 60 recycling centers serving much of southern California.

He established Los Angeles' first curbside recycling program in 1972 and was the first citywide recycling contractor for Los Angeles and Santa Monica from the mid-1970s into the late 1980s. Ecolo-Haul was later acquired by Waste Management Inc. and Petersen served as a vice-president and director of environmental affairs for the company's Recycle America program from 1988 to 1997.

He has advised local, State and federal agencies, corporate entities, business and environmental organizations. He was a member of the task force for the Greening of the White House. Mr. Petersen is Chairman of the Board of Green Seal and co-chairs the Corporate Board of the Environmental Media Association (EMA).

Mr. Petersen is a co-founder of the California Resource Recovery Association and is a founding member of the National Recycling Coalition.

Mr. Petersen was appointed as the environmental member of the California Integrated Waste Management Board in 2005 by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.