Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design-Existing Buildings (LEED-EB):

Operations and Maintenance

Waste Stream Audit:Six Steps for conducting a “Dumpster Dive”

Inquiring Minds:

What is the difference between a Waste Stream Audit and the AB75 Report?

Why conduct a Waste Stream Audit?

How do you conduct a Waste Characterization?

What LEED-EB credits does this “dumpster dive” meet?

Synonymous Terminology

Waste Characterization (term to describe activity in separating garbage in categories of waste types)

Waste Stream Audit (term used in the US Building Green Building Council’s LEED-EB rating

system to earn one point under the Materials and Resources category)

Dumpster Dive (slang term to describe all of the above)

State Organization and Agency Recycling Database (SOARD)

vs.

Waste Characterization

SOARD (AB 75) Report is a percentage = total tonnage recycled total tonnage

disposed

Waste Characterization is a random look at the refuse that will go to the

landfill from a large building’s compactor or “brown can”.

Step 1: Have staff hold the garbage one evening.Conduct Waste Characterization during a cool, dry morning outdoors.

Designate a Lead Coordinator.

Example: The Waste Stream from the Department of Education Building Sacramento, CA ~ Summer of 2006

The materials used to conduct the waste categorization:

Fish scale to be used to weigh the waste in

each bag before and after characterizationPlastic gloves, Plastic Sheeting,

Large buckets, Heavy duty garbage bags

Step 2: Weigh all the garbage in each bag for a total prior to opening and starting characterization

Step 3: Pour out the Garbage on the Plastic Sheeting

and start separating into buckets and/or bags.

Note: Be sure to follow LEED EB outlined waste categories

Step 4: Pour the sorted garbage from buckets (if used) to plastic garbage bags and weigh each

category of waste.

Example: Styrofoam waste bagged and weighed

Step 5: Take notes of excess garbage that could be recycled by occupants or staff rather than

thrown into the garbage. These will be used in your new policies changes for waste management.

Example: Partial rolls of toilet paper were routinely being tossed out by staff.

Categorization of the waste products and the crew:

7 people, 4 hours, 1 day of waste from a 421,150 square foot building.

Vince Paul, (front right).

The coordinator will take all the information and compile it into a table to calculate percentages for each category

to identify opportunities for: source reduction

and diversion from the waste stream.

Step 6: Fill out the table of the categories and calculate the percentages according to the LEED-EB guidelines

and letter template. Write up a narrative stating the

opportunities for waste diversion.

Example of Categories: Newspaper

Glass Aluminum

Tin/bi-metalHigh grade paper

Mixed paperCorrugated cardboard

PlasticsConstruction/Demolition

Scrap MetalsTires

Used Motor OilAuto batteries

LeavesGrass

Food Waste

Goal: What more can we do to move garbage from the “trash can” to the “recycling can”?

recycle

INSTEAD OF:

Garbage to landfill

Question to ask: How is trash handled after it is collected?

A. Collected and taken to landfill

B. Collected as recyclables and sorted

C. Collected by a vendor that sorts trash into recyclables vs. landfill

Source Reduction• How can there be less PUT into the garbage?• Can we reuse materials that are really not fully

used like binders, paper tablets, paper clips etc.?

• Can food be composted or otherwise converted to another source?

• How much money can the facility management save by having less garbage? (answer: LOTS)

LEED-EB credits

• Helps to set the policies on recycling in the building for MR pr2

• MRc6 = 1 point to perform a “Waste Stream Audit” during the performance (reporting) period for LEED

• Identifies areas to improve recycling to increase AB75 percentage for MR c7.1 & 7.2 = up to 2 points

Presentation to be posted online at:

www.green.ca.gov/GreenBuildings/ExistingBuildingsToolKit April 2008