Richard Anthony
Zero Waste International
Alliance Zwia.org
The Zero Waste Approach
to Managing Global Resources
Richard Anthony
Zero Waste International Alliance
ZWIA.ORG
• Zero Waste is a goal that is ethical, economical, efficient and
visionary, to guide people in changing their lifestyles and practices
to emulate sustainable natural cycles, where all discarded materials
are designed to become resources for others to use.
• 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.
• Implementing Zero Waste will eliminate all discharges to land, water
or air that are a threat to planetary, human, animal or plant health.
Definition of Zero Waste*
* www.zwia.org/standards.html
• Landfills are one of the largest sources of human generated Methane, which is a Greenhouse Gas (GHG)
• Methane is 21-72x more potent as a
green house gas than Carbon Dioxide (CO2)
Climate and Zero Waste
• For Every Ton of Municipal Solid Waste discarded to Landfill, 71 Tons of materials and energy are wasted.
• Recycling & Composting all discards in California is equal to eliminating the equivalent of all CA auto CO2 emissions
• Nature Is The Model
• Zero Waste, or Darn Close
• Businesses have Achieved
Over 90% Waste Reduction
Is Zero Waste Attainable?
Picture: Methane Earth; Credit: GISS, NASA
Zero Waste Businesses are Leading
the Way (>90% diversion) • Anheuser-Busch, Fairfield,
CA
• Apple Computer, Elk Grove, CA
• Atlanta Zero Waste Zone
• Epson, OR
• Fetzer Vineyards
• Frankie’s Bohemian Café, SF
• Greens Restaurant, SF
• Hewlett-Packard, Roseville, CA
• Honda
• Mad River Brewery
• New Belgium Brewery
• Pillsbury
• Playa Vista, LA, CA
• Ricoh Electronics
• San Diego Wild Animal Park
• Scoma’s Restaurant, SF
• Subaru
• Toyota
• Vandenberg Air Base
• Vons-Safeway
• Xerox Corp
• 2800 Businesses in Japan
See www.earthresource.org
Ricoh Zero-Waste-to-Landfill
Achieved Feb. 2001
0
2000
4000
6000
8000
1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005
Land Disposal 5R Resource Recovery
100% Resource Recovery
Tons
Basic Principles
• E=MC2
– Stuff exists
• There is no “away”
– Your “away” might be my back yard
• No such thing as a free lunch
– Your free lunch is your grand-children's dinner
• Highest and Best Use
• Required Separation at source of
generation
5 R’s Reduce Resource Use &
Greenhouse Gas Production
Aluminum Steel Paper Glass
Energy Use 90-97% 47-74% 23-74% 4-32%
Air
Pollution 95% 85% 74% 20%
Water
Pollution 97% 76% 35%
Mining
Wastes 99% 97% 80%
Water Use 40% 58% 50%
[1] R. Letcher and M. Shiel, “Source separation and Citizen
Recycling”, in William Robinson, ed., The Solid Waste
Handbook, New York, 1986.
Zero Waste Management
• Up Stream
– Clean Production
– Product Redesign
– Product Stewardship
• Down Stream
– Reuse
– Composting
– Recycling
– Resource Recovery Parks
Discards Sorted into the
12 Market Categories Note: Half of the Pie is Organic Material Suitable for Composting
Metals
6% Glass
3%
Paper
37%
Wood
4%
Soils
1%
Textiles
4%
Ceramics
2%
Chemicals
0% Reuse
3%
Polymers
11%
Putrescibles
19%
Plant Debris
10%
Market Categories
1. Reusable
2. Paper
3. Plant Debris
4. Putrescibles
5. Wood
6. Ceramics
7. Soils
8. Metals
9. Glass
10. Polymers
11. Textiles
12. Chemicals
All materials can be grouped into these
12 market-driven categories.
Master Category Clusters
• Paper and Containers/Blue Bin – Paper, metals, glass, polymers
• Organics/Green Bin – Food, vegetative debris, food dirty paper, paper, plant
debris, putrescibles, wood
• Discarded Items/Bulky or Charity Pickup – Furniture, appliances, clothing, toys, tools, reusable
goods, textiles
• Special Discards Resource Recovery Park – Chemicals, construction and demolition materials,
wood, ceramics, soils
Clusters and Facilities
CLUSTERS PROCESSING CENTERS
Recyclables: Paper and containers;
Paper, Metals, Glass, Polymers
Organics: Food, vegetative debris, food dirty paper,
paper, plant debris, putrescibles, wood
Reused Products: Furniture, appliances, clothing, toys,
tools, reusable goods, textiles
Special Discards: Chemicals, construction and demolition
materials, wood, ceramics, soils
Recyclables: Papers, plastic, glass and metal
containers
Organics: Food, vegetable debris, and food paper,
putrescibles, untreated wood and
sheetrock
Reuse & Repair: Reuse, repair, dismantling, reconditioning,
remanufacturing, manufacturing and
resale of furniture, large and small
appliances, electronics, textiles, toys,
tools, metal and ceramic plumbing,
fixtures, lighting, lumber and other used
building materials
C and D: Rock, soils, concrete, asphalt, brick,
land clearing debris, and mixed
construction and demolition materials
Regulated Materials: Used motor oil, paint, pesticides,
cleaners, and other chemicals
Revenue and Jobs from Discards
Clean DozenSM
Master Categories
Jobs Tons
per Year
Market Price
$/T (est.)
Total Value of Discards
in Delaware ($)
1. Reuse 350 28,000 550 15,400,000
2. Paper 65 370,000 20 7,400,000
3. Plant Trimmings 30 100,000 7 700,000
4. Putrescibles 85 190,000 7 1,330,000
5. Wood 24 40,000 4 320,000
6. Ceramics 7 20,000 4 80,000
7. Soils 20 10,000 7 70,000
8. Metals 35 60,000 40 2,400,000
9. Glass 75 30,000 10 300,000
10. Polymers 1,020 110,000 100 11,000,000
11. Textiles 340 40,000 200 8,000,000
12. Chemicals 4 2,000 15 30,000
Total 2,055 1,000,000 47,030,000
Provide Incentives Before Ban or Mandate
Eliminate Waste by
Designing Out of
Products and
Processes
Foster
Sustainable and
Green
Businesses
Retailers Take Back
Difficult to Recycle
Materials
Resource Recovery Park
Producer Responsibility
Expand City Outreach &
Technical Assistance
and Lead by Example
Jobs from
Design &
Discards
© Copyright Eco-Cycle, 2004 with text modifications by permission.
www.ecocycle.org/zerowaste/zwsystem
Empowered Consumer
Zero Waste System (Replace
with Oakland version)
• WWW.RichardAnthonyAssociates.com
• WWW.ZWIA.ORG
• WWW.GRRN.ORG
If you’re not for Zero Waste,
how much waste are you for?
Now its up to you.