Tag: waste-reduction

March 16, 2017

New York City and the Plastic Bag Debate

by Kimberly Stempien  

Courtesy: Plastic Bag Laws

New York City’s OneNYC plan includes a commitment to send zero waste to landfills by 2030. It’s an ambitious goal, and to see it achieved, plastics must be greatly reduced in the waste stream.   In late 2016, the city council approved a bill to implement a plastic bag fee. Described as a BYOBag law, the legislation called for a 5 cent fee on single-use plastic and paper carryout bags at retail outlets. Consumers could avoid the fee by shopping with their own reusable bags. The bill was slated to be implemented on February 15, 2017; however, due to opposition in the state senate and a final veto from Governor Andrew Cuomo, the law was vetoed a day before it was due  to take effect. Although the Governor appears to be in favor of the bill, he believes it needs to be revised, and promised to form “a statewide task force to develop a uniform state plan for addressing the plastic bag problem, complete with local leaders, other stakeholders and leaders appointed by the Senate and the Assembly.” (more…)

May 30, 2015

Waste: Zero, World: Green

by Lisa Bonanate   A world with zero waste – sending nothing to landfill or incineration – sounds like a Utopian dream.  But in San Francisco, it’s a dream that’s becoming a political and social reality.  If you live in San Francisco, you can recycle or compost anything, even hazardous materials and construction waste.  How has the City by the Bay achieved this goal and what can New York learn from its example?  In a recent screening of the documentary Racing to Zero: In Pursuit of Zero Waste, New Yorkers got an eye-opening look at San Francisco’s ambitious recycling program, followed by a panel discussion that explored how the Big Apple stacks up, specifically in light of the mayor’s OneNYC plan.   recycling_m After it achieved the state-mandate of 50% landfill diversion by 2000, San Francisco extended its program by setting a landfill diversion goal of 75% by 2010 and zero waste by 2020.  This will achieve three sustainability goals: conservation of resources, reduced environmental impact and creation of green jobs.  San Francisco has dramatically reduced the amount of waste sent to landfills.  Even so, over half of what goes into the city’s landfill bins can be recycled or composted. When all waste material is separated into the correct blue (recycle) or green (compost) bins, San Francisco’s diversion rate will increase from 80 percent to 90 percent.   (more…)