Minimizing Municipal and Government Waste

Post on 21-Feb-2017

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Developing aSustainable Future

PBS Services is committed to helping Alabama businesses and government agencies manage waste streams e�ciently and profitably.

What isSustainability

The most widely accepted definition of sustainability emerged out of the UN’s

World Commission on Environment and

Development in 1987.

“Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs."

Working towards a sustainable, productive, and profitable future.

Three Great Reasons to Embrace Sustainability in the Government Sector:

1. Rising landfill prices

2. Shrinking landfill capacity

3. Diminishing municipal andgovernment budgets

Changingthe Waste

Management Paradigm

New Waste Management Paradigm:

Waste Prevention (Reduce)

Reuse

Recycle

Conversion/Compost

Transformation/Waste-to-Energy

Landfill

By turning the traditional waste hierarchy on its

head, municipalities and the government sector can both reduce costs

and minimize waste.

In its 2011 report, The Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM) determined that Alabama spent more than $25 million to dispose of over $193 million worth of recyclable materials into landfills.

The Alabama Environmental Council reported that the total average daily solid waste generated by Alabamians is 9.9 pounds per person, compared with the nationalaverage of 4.5 pounds.

The State of Alabama's Recycling Economy

Your Roadmap to Minimizing

Municipal & Government

Waste

Minimize municipal and government waste by including a combination of activities that identify ways to keep materials out of the waste stream in the first place.

Manage and minimize materials that are currently going to landfills.

Key Strategy Stops Along Sustainability Road

1. Analyze: Start by assessing and analyzing your existing waste streams. This may include working with your waste management company to track waste volume and contents

2. Make a plan: Work to develop a program that meets your existing waste management needs while striving to reduce waste. Using SMART goals (strategic, measurable, attainable, realistic and time-based), revise your preliminary plan to reflect the input of your stakeholders.

3. Seek buy-in: Strive to engage, educate, and communicatewith your key stakeholders and community members tohelp ensure your plan’s success.

Key Strategy Stops Along Sustainability Road

4. Start with reduce and reuse: Encourage your employees and personnel to minimize use (encourage the use of email over paper memos, double-side all copies, promote the concept of a paperless o�ce, etc...) and to recycle whenever possible.

5. Maximize recycling: For materials that can’t be reused, look to recycling. Everything from paper to plastic to food waste and cooking oil can be recycled. Used furniture can be donated to local charities.

6. Assess success: Be sure to include measurement as part of your strategy. Use benchmarking, goal-setting, and monitor your bottom-line costs to determine the success of your plan.

Trust PBS Services for

Smart Waste Management

Services

For more information about waste stream audits, waste removal, or recycling, contact PBS Services.

Athens, AL: 256-233-1368Decatur, AL: 256-350-5550Florence, AL: 256-757-9900Huntsville, AL: 256-721-8727

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