ACHIEVING ZERO WASTEHow to Get Started and
Case Studies from The Field
Ohio EPA Sustainability SummitOctober 3, 2017
Agenda
Participant Introductions
Key Concepts
Reuse presentation
Recycling presentation
Composting presentation
Audience Q&A
Participants
Moderator
Joseph Klatt | Ohio EPA
Presenters
MaryEllen Etienne | Reuse International
Doreen Schreiber | Cuyahoga County Solid Waste Management District
Angle Arroyo-Rodriguez | Ohio EPA
Key
Concepts
Zero Waste
Zero Waste means designing and managing products and processes to systematically avoid and eliminate the volume and toxicity of waste and materials, conserve and recover all resources, and not burn or bury them.
Zero Waste International Alliance
Waste Reduction
Waste Reduction/Prevention means using source reduction, reuse, recycling, or composting to prevent or reduce waste generation.
US Environmental Protection Agency
Reuse
Reuse means to extend the life of a product, package or resource by either using it more than once with little to no processing (same or new function), repairing it so it can be used longer, and/or sharing, renting, selling or donating it to/with another party.
Reuse International
Recycling is a series of activities by which material that has reached the end of its current use is processed into material utilized in the production of new products.
National Recycling Coalition
Recycling
Compost is the product resulting from the controlled biological decomposition of organic material that has been sanitized through the generation of heat and stabilized to the point that it is beneficial to plant growth.
US Composting Council
Composting
Making the Business Case for
Waste Reduction and Reuse
MaryEllen Etienne
ABOUT US
Reuse International is dedicated to
increasing awareness of reuse a
central tenet of sustainability through
educational events, training services
and research projects.
ABOUT US
USGBC transforms the way buildings and
communities are designed, built and
operated, enabling an environmentally
and socially responsible, healthy and
prosperous environment that improves
the quality of life.
Zero Waste Drivers:
The Challenges &
Opportunities
Climate Change
Resource Consumption
Municipal Solid Waste
Unemployment
Lack of Awareness
A Shift to SMM
Circular Economy & Zero Waste
Legislation
115TH CONGRESS
H. R. 3444
To decrease the incidence of food waste, and for other purposes.
_________________________________
115TH CONGRESS
H. R. 1034
To authorize the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency
to award grants for municipal solid waste preventions, reuse, and recycling
program development, and for other purposes.
_________________________________
Other Drivers
A few additional drivers to consider:
Lifecycle / Systems Thinking Research
Design for the Environment / Redesign
Empowered Green Consumers
Investments in Recovery Infrastructure
Extended Producer Responsibility
What is the
Reuse Industry?
Conventional Reuse
Thrift Shops and Consignment Stores
Conventional Reuse
Building Materials Reuse Centers and Furniture Banks
Conventional Reuse
Resale Websites and Virtual Materials Exchanges
Conventional Reuse
Last Chance Reuse Sheds
at Municipal Landfills/MRFs
Conventional Reuse
Food Rescue Organizations
and Food Pantries
Conventional Reuse
Flea Markets, Yard Sales and
Private/Public Swap Events
Creative Reuse
Creative Reuse Centers and Upcycling Designers
Reclamation & Salvage
Deconstructed structures transformed into building materials
Adaptive Reuse
Defunct buildings are transformed into residential and/or commercial properties
Refillables & Reusables
Consumer and/or commercial applications of durable, reusable products
Rental & Sharing
The intense use and reuse of products
Repair
Professional repair and self-repair options
Refurbish & Remanufacture
Refurbish is generally low-tech, and remanufacturing is high-tech
What are the
Benefits of Reuse?
People, Planet, Profit
People
Reuse is Socially Responsible
Low-cost, high-quality materials to
individuals and organizations with
limited means
Meaningful, living-wage employment
Planet
Reuse is Environmental Friendly
Serves consumers who want options for
environmentally preferable purchasing
Diverts valuable resources from landfill
Promotes resource conservation
Reduces need for energy & raw
materials, thus mitigates GHG
Reduces plastic pollution by eliminating
single-use materials
Profit
Reuse is Economically Beneficial
Provides savings to donors (tax benefits,
avoided/reduced disposal & purchase)
Provides savings to recipients / green
procurement (reduced and/or avoided
purchase costs)
Generates revenues for individuals,
entrepreneurs and nonprofits
Creates green collar jobs
Reuse is the Original
Green Collar Job
Quote: MaryEllen Etienne | Stats: Institute for Local Self Reliance
Source: Minnesota Pollution Control Agency
Economic Impact of Reuse
Economics of MNs Reuse Industrys
Reuse (used, rental, repair) directly
employs ~46k people in the state
Creates 4.6k jobs in supporting sectors
It generates at least $4 billion in gross
sales annually
Companies are mostly locally-owned &
operated - increases capital retention
Examples of Applied
Best Practice
Business Leaders
Toyota Manufacturing NA (Erlanger,
Kentucky)
Piazza Produce (Indianapolis, Indiana)
Cintas (Mason, Ohio)
All maintain Zero Waste facilities
TRUE certification, verified by GBCI (USGBCs certification entity)
Leading by Example
Goal: Determine if replacing wooden &
cardboard packaging with reusables
saves money & lessens footprint.
Facilitates a network of 65,000 reusable
containers for over 2000
dealers/suppliers
Saved 308 million pounds of wood, 185
millions pounds of cardboard
Saved $445 million dollars in packaging
Toyota Manufacturing N.A.
Goal: Implement a sustainability strategy
that greens both procurement and waste
management aspects of the business
99% products delivered on wood pallets
1 yr reused ~50K standard pallets (16)
Resulted in revenue of ~$165K (16)
Purchased used pallet jacks/forklifts
Realized at least 50% savings versus new
Piazza Produce
Goal: Implement a system-wide sustainability effort to change how they do business.
Facilitates a network reusable uniforms that clothe 5M ppl a day (most w/recycled fiber)
Their industrial laundry provides 20% of waste savings, 12% energy savings & 75% soap savings as compared to home laundry.
Cintas
How Can Your Business
Apply These Strategies?
Reduce & Reuse Strategies
Kitchen / Cafeteria
OfficePaperless office,
Duplex printing
Reduce portion size
to reduce food waste
Internal/External
materials exchange
Reusable service ware,
Donate excess food
Shipping / Logistics
Refuse to work with non-
recyclable packagingRequire vendors to
use reusable pallets
Find Your Reuse Resources
Take the time to figure out WHO makes
up your local reuse network
Surplus Food
Unused Office Equipment & Supplies
Salvaged Building Materials
Repair Services
Logistics Solutions (reusable uniforms,
packaging materials, etc.)
City & County Partners
Go Full Circle
NOT just end-of-pipe solutions, must look
to purchasing & maintenance
Logistics durable/reusable packaging
Furniture refurbished workstations
Office remanufactured toner
cartridges, refillable pens/pencils
Kitchen/Cafeteria: reusable service
ware, reusable to-go boxes, divert food
Share/Repair online exchange &
repair cafes
Assess the Situation
Determine the waste stream baseline
Manufacturing process by-products
Transport packaging / logistics
General packaging waste
Paper & other office supplies
Service ware
Food
Bathroom products
Other areas/products
Track Your Efforts
Figure out how to measure diversion
# of tons diverted from the landfill
$ avoided disposal costs (donor/seller)
$ avoided purchase costs
recipient/buyer)
$ value of materials donated (donor)
$ revenues earned (donor/seller)
# of job created or retained
# of families/individuals/organizations
assisted
Resources
Join us at ReuseConex, Cincinnati,
mid-Oct, 2018
Check out our online Reuse Library
Background Material (The Reuse
Primer), Reports, Articles, Research
Inquire about GBCIs new Zero Waste
certification process called TRUE
(Total Resource Use & Efficiency)
References
Links referenced in this session
EPA LifeCycle Study: bit.ly/EPALCStudy
MPCAs Study: bit.ly/MPCAStudy
ISLR Job Stats: bit.ly/ILSRReuseStats
Reuse Library: bit.ly/ReuseLibrary
ReuseConex: reuseconex.org
GBCIs TRUE: true.gbci.org
bit.ly/EPALCStudyhttp://bit.ly/MPCAStudyhttp://bit.ly/ILSRReuseStatshttp://bit.ly/ReuseLibraryhttp://reuseconex.org/http://true.gbci.org/
Thank You!
Reuse International
http:// reuseinternational.org
USGBC Ohio
http://usgbc.org/usgbc-ohio
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