Today's Topics:
CIWMB Web Site
National Recycling Congress
Opinion Editorial
Zero Waste
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Date: Sun, 14 Sep 1997 15:14:06, -0500
From: david_reynolds@prodigy.com ( DAVID B REYNOLDS)
Subject: CIWMB Web Site
List Members,
I tried to visit the California Integrated Waste Management Board's
web site (http://www.ciwmb.ca.gov) today, but a user name/password
dialog box popped up. This is a recent change, because I was able to
visit the site freely about a week ago. Does anyone know why access
is now restricted? How does one go about getting a user name and
password? This site has really evolved into a great resource
(including Cal statutes AND regs), and I really need to have access.
I know that an associate at my office location downloaded some items
from the site last Friday, but I am doing some work at home this
weekend, and I sure could use the access!
Thanks in advance for any information along these lines...
Dave Reynolds
Senior Associate Economist
J. Michael Huls, REA
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Date: Sun, 14 Sep 1997 23:34:24 -0400 (EDT)
From: RicAnthony@aol.com
Subject: National Recycling Congress
NATIONAL RECYCLING CONGRESS
ORLANDO, FLORIDA
TUESDAY 1-4 PM:
Look at Your Program For The Location
GRASSROOTS RECYCLING FORUM
1:00 GRASSROOTS RECYCLING FORUM
THE GRASSROOTS RECYCLING NETWORK (GRRN)
WHO ARE WE, WHAT IS OUR MESSAGE
GRRN ORGANIZIONAL HISTORY
GRRN PROGRAMS FOR 97/98
ORGANIZING OPPORTUNITES
America Recycles Day, Earth Day, upcoming conferences and campaigns.
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Date: Sun, 14 Sep 1997 23:56:16 -0400 (EDT)
From: RicAnthony@aol.com
Subject: Opinion Editorial
WHATS THE MATTER WITH RECYCING
by Richard V. Anthony
What is all this talk about recycling being a waste of time and money? The
motto "Waste Not Want Not", is an American tradition, as is the motto "Don't
Tread On Me". Prior to the end of World War II, every city in the USA had
a required recycling program. Our forefathers were self reliant and
conservative in the use of resources.
Do those who criticize recycling think that calling a resource a waste
convinces working people in this Country? American workers tend to listen to
Chief Seattle, who advised that we do not inherit the land from our
forefathers, we borrow it from our children, than the journalist who thought
recycling was a waste of time.
In the near future, a select committee appointed by the City of San Diego,
City Council to determine what San Diegans want do with discarded resources
in the year 2,000, will release its recommendations to the City Council.
Along with the institution of recycling collection services, the committee
recommends a Resource Recovery Ordinance that will prohibit certain
designated recyclables from being buried at the landfill. The committee and
the public in San Diego see recycling as a means to gain resource and job
sustainability.
Yet we read in the "Wall Street Journal", "New York Times" and even sometimes
in the "Union Tribune" criticism about recycling. Recently, a recycling
critic challenged the State goal requiring a reduction of 50% of materials
buried at the landfill by the year 2000. The critic claims that such a goal
is not cost effective and is an abuse of the powers of the State.
When AB 939 "The Integrated Waste Management Act of 1989" was chaptered into
law, the Statewide recycling rate was 12%. The year 1990 was set as the base
year, 1995 was a set as a target for the first 25% of the resources to be
diverted, and the year 2000 is the date for the 50% target. Today the
Statewide average is around 30% .
In San Diego, one of the reasons landfill tonnage's are down is that most of
the cities have attained 40% diversions and beyond. . The County Recycling
Plan, first initiated by then Supervisor Susan Golding in 1988, called for a
30% diversion of resources from County Landfills. One aspect of this plan
was to use landfill fees to pay for trucks and bins that were in turn
granted to the cities and their contractors to begin the first residential
and commercial recyclable materials collections.
A ban on the burial of designated recyclables at County Landfills was put
into effect in 1992. Wasted resources disposed of at County Landfills
dropped from 2.4 million tons in 1990 to 1.3 million tons in 1993, over 45%.
This program was recognized in 1990, by the California Department of
Conservation, Division of Recycling as the best in the State, and by the
National Recycling Coalition in 1993 as the best in the nation.
The public sees recycling as a resource management issue. In some Cities,
the public has voted to pay for the opportunity to recycle discarded
resources. The increased availability of these recovered materials has
created thousands of new jobs and businesses. This is a hundred times more
jobs than the number of jobs supported by the landfilling of these resources.
These businesses have been started to provide the collection , processing,
transportation, and remanufacturing of products related to the recovered
metal, glass, fiber, plastic and organics.
Most of us who recycle think, we can at least diminish our impact on the
planet by putting back some of what we have used. Some of the most
successful and cost effective recycling and composting programs found
anywhere in the nation exist here in San Diego County. San Diego is a major
provider of secondary resources to local, Mexican and Pacific Rim industries.
How can we change a consumer based economic system that treats waste as an
unfunded mandate to a system that places a value on sustainability and
corporate responsibility, before all the ancient forests and wilderness areas
are gone? In the perfect world zero waste would be inevitable. Both
Biblically and scientifically when we look at our daily discards as
resources, we are obliged as good stewards to handle them correctly.
Zero waste or darn close is a much better of goal than 50% by the year 2000.
Clean separated sources of resources are and will be the basis for
sustainable jobs and industries. To make this work we will have to have the
political will to take away subsidies and depletion allowances that encourage
the use of virgin materials over recovered resources. The people have the
right to shift the national debate about the future of recycling from a waste
management paradigm to a zero waste paradigm and move this country toward
zero waste of both human and material resources.
Richard V. Anthony is a member of the national steering committee of the
GrassRoots Recycling Network and a founding member of the Board of Directors
of the California Resource Recovery Association and the National Recycling
Coalition. He represents the San Diego Chapter of the California Resource
Recovery Association on the Countywide San Diego Area Government Integrated
Waste Management Citizens Advisory Committee.
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Date: Sun, 14 Sep 1997 18:58:51 -0400 (EDT)
From: STEVESUESS@aol.com
Subject: Zero Waste
As the CRRA Zero Waste Conf. chari, and one of the founders of the GRN,
and as the CRRA ambassador to this years NRC conference I am looking forward
to pushing a Zero Waste agenda at the NRC conference.
I would like to see a very simple "We support the Zero Waste goal"
proposal brought before the NRC Board on sunday..... anything more complex is
liekly to fail and possibly collapse this movement. (Remember the public
understands this, supports this. The media loves it, politicians get it and
like it..... everyone likes the concept..... get the NRC Board to like it and
make it part of the NRC.... then we can work on the details - And remember:
Once you accept the Zero Waste goal, the details follow all by themselves!
that is what is so clever about NOT getting into the details till after you
have the resolution!)
I'd like to encourge all of you who are going to the NRC conference to
talk about Zero Waste above all else!!!!
The movement is moving....lets all get behind it and help push!!
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End of GreenYes Digest V97 #221
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