On October 14th Jeff Caton and Robin Schidlowski from Environmental Science Associates, and Alex Dmitriew from the San Francisco Department of the Environment, discussed how San Francisco's zero waste strategy affects Bay Area businesses. Alex highlighted San Francisco's 77% landfill diversion rate and its progress in meeting its 2020 goal of zero waste, while Jeff focused on the reductions in greenhouse gas emissions achieved by successful landfill diversion strategies, including the strong reductions in methane gas attained by keeping compostable materials out of landfills. In a comprehensive overview of zero waste, Robin pulled interesting examples from ESA's zero waste work with the private sector. She underlined the importance of establishing a waste baseline, and highlighted financial incentives for businesses to employ zero waste strategies. During the roundtable discussion, BC3 members emphasized the importance of passing product design and packaging legislation to help businesses close the gap between current landfill diversion rates and their  zero waste goals.

Presented by:
 
Jeff Caton, Renewable Resources Group Director

Robin Schidlowski, Renewable Resources Associate

Andrew Dmitriew, Commercial Zero Waste Coordinator

"The Bay Area is fortunate to have a visionary business community that is willing to get out in front of a daunting issue like global warming."
- Gavin Newsom, Mayor of San Francisco