infoCycling, Winter 2001

In this issue:

• Can Zero Waste Work?
• What Is Zero Waste?
• City of Burbank's Race to Zero Waste
• DNSWMA's Zero Waste Plan
• Jurisdiction Size Doesn't Matter
• Resources and Tools
• Coming Soon
• Editor's Note

Can zero waste work for your jurisdiction?

To answer that question, we have featured the City of Burbank and the Del Norte Solid Waste Management Authority (DNSWMA), a regional agency, in this edition of infoCycling. Without a doubt, these two jurisdictions are working hard to promote zero waste in their communities.  Burbank’s goal is to instill the concept of zero waste in residents and businesses, and DNSWMA has implemented a zero waste plan.

Throughout this edition, we have graphically displayed tools from the Board's Local Government Central Web site (www.ciwmb.ca.gov/LGCentral/) to illustrate the progress these jurisdictions have made. If you are curious about how your jurisdiction measures up, please go to the Web site and find out.

Before we discuss why and how Burbank and DNSWMA are striving for zero waste, let’s define zero waste.

Top

What is zero waste?

There are two schools of thought on the meaning of zero waste as a goal.

• Some jurisdictions believe that zero waste can be achieved. They believe everything can be recycled, reused, or composted and nothing needs to be, or should be, disposed.
• Some jurisdictions do not believe waste can be completely eliminated, but that all segments of society can and should continue to work together to implement effective recycling, reuse, and composting programs. The expectation in this school of thought is that by working toward zero waste, we can eliminate the maximum amount of waste, but we will still have some residual disposal.

Burbank's Race to Zero Waste (continue this newsletter>>)

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Last updated: October 26, 2007