HomeMy WebLinkAboutSustainable Waste ManagementSustainable Waste Management
The City of Oshkosh collects recyclable and solid waste materials, and disposes of them in
partnership with Winnebago County. The county is a member of a tri- county agreement including
Brown and Outagamie counties. This 25 -year agreement, begun in 2002, precludes a need for the
city to deal with individual landfill issues. Our solid waste is currently going into the Winnebago
County landfill until approximately 2011 when it is anticipated it will be full, so waste will then
go to the Outagamie County landfill until filled, and eventually Brown County will take its turn.
Landfills, however, have their problems with polluted soil, groundwater and air, especially for
nearby neighbors. While siting another in the Oshkosh area may be a long way off, it is critical to
develop strategies to reduce the amount of landfilled waste. Recycling helps. Single- stream
recycling adopted by the city in October 2009 is already showing an increase in recycled items as
well as cost savings with automated equipment. Materials collected from the blue recycling
containers at each residence are transferred to the Tri- County Single- Stream Recycling Center in
Outagamie County for sorting and sustainable redistribution. Promoting reuse of materials is
equally important. Area residents and businesses have many options ranging from grinding
masonry materials from demolished buildings for reuse in road construction projects, to utilizing
resale and thrift stores for both donations and purchases, to composting yard waste to feed a
family garden. As technology advances and new markets are created, we can expect to see a
significant increase in options for waste reduction and uses of recovered materials.
Objective: To promote consumer product awareness, increase recycling rates, and reduce
the amount of substances entering landfills.
Education. Minimize waste creation by improving public understanding of source reduction as
the most preferred method of waste management. Educate and promote reduction, reuse,
recycling, and recovering of waste materials. Provide information to increase consumer product
awareness and environmentally preferable purchasing. Identify cost - saving benefits of waste
reduction, as well as environmental gains.
Waste Reduction. Explore merits of a "Pay -As- You - Throw" policy for material disposal
programs, evaluating weight rather than volume of waste. This method is a better reflection of
actual waste generated and rewards those who act more sustainably.
Recycling. Promote better institutional and business waste reduction and recycling programs.
Encourage alternatives to paper ''use, which at 75% is the major contributor to office waste.
Provide recycling containers in public areas along with waste barrels.
Composting. Provide education on setting up and maintaining compost bins at home, community
gardens, and the workplace for organic waste (grass, leaves, brush, apples, garden debris, etc.).
Promote site for community composting of leaves and other organic materials. Partner with UWO
Renewable Energy Facility biomass digester to convert community organic waste to electricity
and heat.
Construction Waste. Consider an ordinance that requires mandatory recovery, reuse, and
recycling of demolition debris and building scraps at construction sites.
Consumer Waste. Encourage recycling /reuse of used furniture, clothing, household, building
and decorating items through thrift stores, Freecycle.org, Habitat for Humanity ReStore, etc.
Non - biodegrades. Encourage use of cloth or reusable shopping bags. Educate retailers and
shoppers about advantages of reusable bags, and promote reusable bag programs. Consider an
ordinance that bans free plastic bags and styrofoam containers. Educate community about water
bottle waste and high quality of city tap water Promote sale of safe multi -use containers and
encourage restaurants and retailers to provide means for customers to refill bottles with city
water.
Electronics. Promote producer responsibility for the recycling of their discarded products. Create
community -wide mandates that businesses /vendors who sell electronics must take back a certain
percentage amount for recycling, material recovery, and remanufacturing purposes. Support
legislation to establish and enhance producer responsibility laws.
Prescription and OTC Drugs. Continue to encourage and facilitate the collection and disposal
of unwanted/excess prescription and over - the - counter drugs. Educate the public on need to keep
these items out of the wastewater and landfill systems.
Hazardous waste. Promote the availability of the household hazardous material facility, at the
Winnebago County landfill. Remind residents on a regular basis that other items such as tires,
batteries, and waste oil should be taken to the landfill for proper disposal.
Special Events. Create a pilot project to make an established community event zero -waste by
using products that are bio -based or recyclable, using glass, bio - plastics and paper products
instead of plastic. Expand to include all community events. Consider an ordinance to require
events to become zero - waste.
Littering. Continue to enforce littering laws. Encourage citizens /visitors to pick up litter in parks,
public places, along waterways, during special events, and in the general community. Teach local
geese to use a litter box.