Tag: trash

September 30, 2015

A Greener Future for Waste Management

by Tamanna Virmani   trashAll of us living or working in New York City recognize and admire the fact that the city is a trailblazer in many areas. However, waste management in general, and organics recycling in particular, have been challenging issues for the city – issues needing a trailblazing spirit to establish best practices for the future. A recent panel discussion hosted by the U.S. Green Building Council explored the future of waste management in New York City.   Led by moderator Clare Miflin of Kiss + Cathcart Architects, experts Christina Grace of Foodprint Group and Brett Mons from the New York City Department of Sanitation (DSNY) discussed food waste in light of Mayor DeBlasio’s OneNYC plan. OneNYC, an ambitious plan to make New York the most sustainable big city in the world, encompasses a number of initiatives, one of which is to send zero waste to landfills by 2030. This will require expansion of the New York City organics program to serve all New Yorkers by the end of 2018 and a 90% reduction in commercial waste disposal by 2030. In order to achieve these goals, major changes are needed, along with active involvement from residents, businesses, the building community and the Department of Sanitation. (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…)

July 27, 2009

August Forum: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Join GreenHomeNYC in August as we “talk trash”! Where does your waste and recycling go? What happens to a building at the end of its life? What about the waste that’s created during renovations and construction, even before residents have moved in? At this month’s forum we’ll be talking about apartment recycling, deconstruction, and construction waste recycling. Wednesday Aug. 19, 2009 6:30 PM – 8:00 PM Where: Hafele Showroom, 25 East 26th Street @ Madison Ave Please RSVP below, or sign up for AIA credit here. (more…)