infoCycling: Winter 2001, continued

Zero waste:  jurisdiction size doesn’t matter

Whether your population is small, large, or in between, you can strive for zero waste!

Zero waste is being pursued by small, rural jurisdictions such as Del Norte Solid Waste Management Authority (population about 28,000) and large, urban jurisdictions such as Burbank (population about 100,000).

Burbank has its own landfill, available to city vehicles only. Other waste haulers operating in Burbank used 12 landfills in four counties and reported disposal of about 100,438 tons of waste in 1999.

Del Norte Solid Waste Management Authority used three landfills in three counties and disposed about 18,097 tons of waste in 1999. Jurisdiction Disposal by Facility Web pages for DNSWMA and Burbank for 1999 are shown below.

Burbank and DNSWMA are both implementing the zero waste concept as a means of conserving resources, reducing waste, and using less landfill space.

Your jurisdiction may want to do the same if you are concerned about landfill shortages in your area or how much waste is being disposed. Introducing the concept of zero waste in your jurisdiction and seeking to implement a plan may help create a revitalized interest in waste reduction practices.

Many believe that if all California jurisdictions implement a zero waste plan or at least instill the concept of zero waste in their communities, California’s waste stream could continue to be dramatically reduced.

Kudos to Burbank, Del Norte Waste Management Authority, and other jurisdictions that have voluntarily implemented zero waste plans or are working toward zero waste!

Web resources and tools at your fingertips!

Following are some of those resources and tools, as well as a few offered by other groups (to which we link on our site). If you have questions about this information, contact Larry Stephens in the Board’s Waste Analysis Branch at (916) 341-6241 or at lstephen@ciwmb.ca.gov .

Board Resources and Tools

• California Waste Stream Profiles (www.ciwmb.ca.gov/Profiles/Juris/)––provides summarized solid waste management information by pulling together information from numerous data and information sources, which can be viewed on a jurisdiction, tire facility, or a material type (such as waste tires).
• Local Government Central (www.ciwmb.ca.gov/LGCentral/)––provides resources on items such as planning and implementing waste diversion programs, tools to assist in tracking disposal and diversion rates, information on new resources and tools available, local and regional summaries, and a local government glossary.
• WasteLine (www.ciwmb.ca.gov/LGCentral/WasteLine/)––a "one-stop shop" for data questions if you cannot find information elsewhere in Local Government Central. WasteLine provides useful, reliable, current information about California’s waste stream and can be accessed by e-mail at wasteline@ciwmb.ca.gov or by telephone at (916) 341-6675.
• Jurisdiction Disposal by Facility (www.ciwmb.ca.gov/LGTools/DRS/JurDspFa.asp)-- provides annual estimates of the disposal amounts for jurisdictions in California as reported by county or regional agency disposal reporting coordinators. The report shows the total amount disposed by the jurisdiction at each disposal facility for a requested year.
• Planning Annual Report Information System (PARIS)         (www.ciwmb.ca.gov/LGCentral/PARIS/)––contains information about the types of programs implemented by local governments to reduce waste creation, to divert waste away from landfills, and to prevent disposal of household hazardous waste (HHW). PARIS diversion program reports and terms and codes can be found after accessing PARIS.
• Jurisdiction Waste Diversion Program and Diversion Rate Summary                       (www.ciwmb.ca.gov/LGTools/ PARIS/JurPgmSu.asp)––shows the diversion rate and operating programs for a selected jurisdiction and year.
• Solid Waste Characterization Database                              (www.ciwmb.ca.gov/WasteChar/JurisSel.asp)––provides estimates of the types and amounts of materials in the waste streams of individual California jurisdictions in 1999. This includes information on residential waste and waste produced by businesses in a jurisdiction.
• Business Resource Efficiency and Waste Reduction (www.ciwmb.ca.gov/BizWaste/)––provides information on ways to save resources and money. This includes materials designed to help local governments and businesses find markets for materials previously discarded, information on office paper reduction campaigns, and information on green building.
• Business Kits (www.ciwmb.ca.gov/BizWaste/BizKits.htm)--contain a variety of publications that local governments can use to educate businesses in their communities about waste reduction. The materials contained in the kits can be mixed and matched to create customized sets, appropriate for different types of businesses.
• CalMAX (www.ciwmb.ca.gov/CalMAX/)––helps businesses find markets for materials they have traditionally discarded. Businesses, schools, and nonprofits can utilize CalMAX to search for available and wanted materials.
• Reuse—The Heart of Waste Prevention (www.ciwmb.ca.gov/Reuse/)––educates and motivates people to think of material reuse as the first option in diverting unwanted materials from California landfills. Reuse means to use a material over again in its current form without breaking it down into a raw material.
• Food Waste Management (www.ciwmb.ca.gov/FoodWaste/)––provides information on how to divert food waste. This includes information on waste prevention, food donation, animal feed, and composting/vermicomposting practices.
• Grants and Loans (www.ciwmb.ca.gov/Grants/)––provides information on Board funding opportunities, authorized by legislation, to assist public and private entities in the safe and effective management of the waste stream.
• Recycling Market Development Zone Program (RMDZ) (www.ciwmb.ca.gov/RMDZ/)–– provides information on incentives to businesses that use secondary materials from the waste stream as feedstock for their manufacturing processes. The RMDZ program combines recycling with economic development to fuel new businesses and create jobs.
• Waste Prevention World (www.ciwmb.ca.gov/WPW/)––provides information about resource efficiency and rethinking daily activities. This includes ways to reduce materials needed to operate a business and ways to reduce materials a person uses every day.

External Resources and Tools

• Earth’s 911 Information System (www.1800cleanup.org/)--provides a single source of community-specific environmental and recycling information.Information on subjects such as local recycling, household hazardous waste collections, composting, and environmental events can be accessed. Earth’s 911 can also be reached by dialing 1-800-CLEAN-UP.
• Local Government Links (www.ciwmb.ca.gov/LGCentral/Links.asp) is a Board site 
  that provides links to local government waste management Web sites, both in California and elsewhere. This is a great opportunity to share information.
• Grassroots Recycling (www.grrn.org/)provides information such as zero waste publications and information on zero waste, resources and links, various materials that can be ordered, and recycling information for kids.

(Note: Referral to Web sites outside the Board does not imply any State of California or Integrated Waste Management Board endorsement of the opinions or ideas expressed therein, or guarantee the validity of the information provided.)

Coming Soon

Look for these 2 editions

• An infoCycling Extra will give you up-to-date contact information for Local assistance staff and State and Local Assistance Branch staff (names, phone numbers, and e-mail addresses).
• Expect also a multitude of information on disposal reporting in a Special Edition of infoCycling.

Editor’s Note

I hope you have enjoyed this issue of infoCycling and that it has given you useful information about zero waste.

Please contact me with your suggestions on articles you would like to see included in infoCycling and announcements of events in your jurisdiction.

I can be reached at (916) 341-6240 or by e-mail at twebb@ciwmb.ca.gov .

Your suggestions for infoCycling are always welcome!

--Tracy

Publication #341-01-002

Last updated: December 28, 2007