Expanding Recycling at Expanding Recycling at FacilitiesFacilitiesEPA Potomac Yard Program

Marlene RedDoor

USEPA, Office of Resource Conservation and Recovery

reddoor.marlene@epa.gov, 703-308-7276

July 15, 2007

MCOG Recycling & Solid Waste Management Committee

A Comprehensive Approach

• Building Relationships• Building General Awareness• Tools and Events to Educate• Volunteer Green Teams• Doing Research• Creating Proposals and Options• Keeping it going - Short and long term

goals• Budget?

How we Approach it –Environmental Stewardship

• StewardshipStewardship is taking personal responsibility and interest in management of something entrusted to one's care.

• Environmental stewardshipEnvironmental stewardship is the responsibility for environmental quality shared by all those whose actions affect the environment.

Build Relationships with Everyone Needed for Success

• We have volunteers from all working offices in PY (ORD, OPP, OSWER)

• Also our facilities and building managers – Edgar Lewis (OARM/FMSD) and Maureen Dowling (Jones, Lang, LaSalle)

• EPA’s Recycling/EMS Coordinator – Dexter Johnson (OARM-FMSD)

• Also the part time volunteers willing to work on key projects

• Reps from our Emerging Leadership Network

• Managers also sign off on the Charter & Projects

Why?

• Environmental Statutes• RCRA, Pollution Prevention Act, Clean

Air Act, etc.

• Executive Orders 13423, 13514

• Environmental Management System implementation

• Local Ordinances

Walking the walk! Talking the talk!

Potomac Yard Green Team

MISSION: •Take the lead in advising on, supporting, and implementing practices to reduce EPA’s environmental footprint at Potomac Yard (PY), • promote these practices among its tenants, and

• serve as a model for other facilities, offices, or groups at EPA and in general.CHARTER:•Signed by all PY ODs and/or DODs

Recycling Goals• Implement a compostable waste collection• Refine measurement capacity and set baselines statistics• Record quarterly numbers for recycling commodities (paper,

containers, etc.) (continue)• Recycle toner cartridges for all printers and copiers (continue)• Collect and recycle fluorescent bulbs (where not done) -count

number• Recycle electronics equipment and participate in the Federal

Electronics Challenge• Increase the recycling of cans, bottles and plastics, paper, and

newspapers (out of waste baskets)• Participate and help promote a “clean your files day” event at

least once a year• Recycle binders, file folders and binder clips – set up recycling

stations for office supplies• Institute “Techno Trash” Collection for all of Potomac Yards

(http://www.greendisk.com/gdsite/services.aspx )• Set up Plastic bag recycling

Events for America Recycles Day

Potomac Yard Recycling Amounts in Tons and Diversion Percentage for 2007

MeasurementWarm Model: Waste Reduction Calculator

http://epa.gov/climatechange/wycd/waste/calculators/Warm_home.html - You can take your information and use this calculator

Two Potomac Yard                    

  Jan Feb March April May June July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec Total

Mixed Office Paper 1.7600 2.2800 1.2600 1.2190 1.0100 0.5000 1.4982 1.2441 1.1951 1.3875 1.4060   14.7599

Newspaper 0.0760 0.1000 0.0640 0.0260 0.0280 0.0320 0.1115 0.0405 0.0770 0.1435 0.0660   0.7645

Plastic/Glass/Aluminum 0.1070 0.0800 0.1800 0.1300 0.1300 0.2100 0.1910 0.2040 0.2435 0.3195 0.2985   2.0935

Plastic Bags 0.0000 0.0000 0.0000 0.0000 0.0000 0.0070 0.0000 0.0000 0.0000 0.0000 0.0245   0.0315

Light Bulbs 0.0010 0.4800 0.0017 0.0060 0.0007 0.0013 0.0004 0.0115 0.0008 0.0001 0.0016   0.5051

Ink Toners 0.0500 0.0780 0.0900 0.0760 0.0470 0.0660 0.0360 0.0270 0.0305 0.0050 0.0195   0.5250

Batteries 0.0220 0.0230 0.0210 0.0210 0.0130 0.0260 0.0165 0.0210 0.0210 0.0145 0.0185   0.2175

Shredded Paper 0.0000 0.0000 0.0000 0.0000 0.0000 0.0000 0.0000 0.0000 0.0000 0.0000 0.0000   0.0000

Cardboard 0.2100 0.3400 0.3200 0.3104 0.2800 0.2700 0.4818 0.2541 0.1702 0.5439 0.3996   3.5800

Total for Recyclables 2.2260 3.3810 1.9367 1.7884 1.5087 1.1123 2.3354 1.8022 1.7381 2.4140 2.2342    

Refuse 2.2600 2.4000 1.7700 3.1490 2.4400 1.8900 3.0756 2.4189 2.8749 3.7000 2.0868   28.0652

Total 4.4860 5.7810 3.7067 4.9374 3.9487 3.0023 5.4110 4.2211 4.6130 6.1140 4.3210    

Total Diversion49.62

%58.48

%52.25

%36.22

%38.21

%37.05

%43.16

%42.70

%37.68

%39.48

%51.71

%#DIV/

0! #DIV/0!

2009

Local Community Involvement

For Our Environment and Our Community

How do we get everyone onboard?

• Do the research for “them”

• Make it easy

• Save “them” money

• Provide Volunteers

• Give away food

Compostable Waste Pilot

• Looked at programs already in progress• Wrote Proposal• Found 2 haulers• Used bins already in warehouse• Sent out all hands notice for each floor• Held pizza luncheon with presentations

from Haulers and Green Team• Had bins in room and used them during

demonstration• Made visual display boards for each floor• Tried out different signs

Pilot Program Proposal What we are testing?

• PY can increase its waste diversion rate to 80% with compostable waste collection separated from trash – time frame of 2 years. (Pilot tests amount changed on 5 floors)

• It can also cut down on the number of plastic bags place in the waste stream by “kicking the can” out of individual cubicles and into a more central location.

• What’s left in the trash after compostable collection?

•Compostable waste consists of items that can be composted in a commercial composting facility •All food - including meat, bones and eggshells.•Plants – trimmings, leaves, grass, brush, weeds, etc.•Other compostables – waxed cardboard, pizza boxes, paper products (napkins, paper towels, plates, cups, milk cartons, etc), tea bags, coffee grinds and filters, biodegradable (biobased) utensils, cups and containers. (plastics containers made of soy or corn based materials like clamshell containers – on if it has a label saying polylactic or the equivalent). •Any compostable container that has been contaminated from the recycling stream by having food waste on it.

What will we collect and in what containers?

Information in Proposal

• What will change? • Where to collect it? (Locations) • In what is it collected? • Who collects the compostable waste?• Where does it go? (from floors to lower

level in bldg.)• When is it collected? (How often?)• What floors will be in the pilot (5 out of 12

floors in pilot)• What else has to be changed?• Implementation:• Process and Sequence – when and how• Timeline

Contractors Info

• Building owner had all information to give to bidders when current contract was ended

• Gave 2 sources• Envirelation – Walker Lunn - 202-465-4802

http://www.envirelation.com/contact.html

• Bates Trucking – Tara Lewis - 301-699-3268

http://www.batestrucking.com/

• 3rd Source Found• Paterson Environmental Holdings, Harold B.

Wiggins, 410-588-9729 (Hauls out of DE and has transfer station in MD) http://www.marylandrecyclingnetwork.org/webinars/Composting-MRN.pdf

Success…

• 5 Floors in building piloted

• All tenants by December 2010

• Diversion looks to be about 80% of what was in the trash in kitchens

• All paper towels from restrooms

• Smaller amounts of compostable waste in trash each week

• Numbers out in a few weeks – May –July.

Tools and Sites

• EPA Compost Web Site• http://www.epa.gov/epawaste/conserve/rrr/

composting/science.htm• http://www.epa.gov/epawaste/conserve/rrr/

composting/pubs/index.htm

• Nearest Facilities • http://www.recycledgreenindustries.com/index.html• http://www.peninsulacompostcompany.com/

facilities/WORC.html

• Environmental Stewardship Resource Guide:• http://www.fedcenter.gov/epa/oswer/esrg/index.htm