Monthly Topic Briefs
Updates on current issues and projects.
As part of its annual Business Efficiency Awards, StopWaste is recognizing four Alameda County businesses for their efforts in upstream waste prevention through reuse, recycling, composting, and food waste prevention. Their leadership this year is particularly exemplary given the operational challenges they faced during the COVID-19 pandemic.
StopWaste’s schools-based outreach has traditionally provided K-12 students with environmental education programs that encourage students and their families to take action on the 4Rs (reduce, reuse, recycle, rot) at school, at home and in their communities.
The RE:Source guide is the latest generation of online search tools from StopWaste, intended to provide answers for what to do with the things you no longer need as well as comprehensive city-specific curbside service information on what goes where. It replaces the previous online guide RecycleWhere.org, and is faster and easier to use.
Measure D, the county charter amendment that established the Recycling Board, mandates that the Recycling Board create and periodically update a Recycling Plan to plan, fund, and implement a comprehensive source reduction and recycling program. The current Recycling Plan extends through 2020, and is therefore in need of an update.
In 2018, StopWaste partnered with Alameda County school districts and food recovery organizations to pilot a new food donation program through the Smart Cafeteria Initiative. This program, funded in part by a grant from CalRecycle, was designed to help schools reduce waste through prevention, food share, re-serving, and donation to those in need.
In Alameda County, 84 properties have earned the ReScape California Rated Landscape status, as of June 2020.
The program scorecard helps project teams plan, track and verify the practices they implement to improve their landscapes.
Soil is a living ecosystem – a single tablespoon can contain billions of organisms. The healthier our soil, the more resilient our gardens, landscapes and farmlands are. Utilizing compost is the simplest way to create a beneficial environment for growing healthy, disease resistant plants.
Using compost:
Single-use wet wipes – baby, disinfectant, disposable – are ubiquitous in our society. Right now, people are using wet wipes in record numbers because of sanitation concerns and toilet paper shortages due to the COVID-19 crisis.
Knowing how to properly store your fruit and vegetables can keep them fresher, longer, minimize trips to the grocery store, and help save money. Use this guide to identify what should be stored where.
StopWaste is currently accepting applications for a range of grant opportunities with total funding up to $400k available to both nonprofits and businesses, aimed at increasing individual, business, and community involvement in the reduction of waste. Proposed projects must be located in and/or serve the residents and/or businesses of Alameda County.
California state law requires that each county adopt a County Integrated Waste Management Plan (CoIWMP) that serves as a roadmap to approaching countywide solid waste and recycling issues, including landfill needs.
PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are a class of man-made chemicals used in a variety of consumer goods that can persist in the environment indefinitely (earning them the nickname “forever chemicals”). PFAS and are used in everyday products such as nonstick cookware, water resistant clothing, and even dental floss and cosmetics. More recently, manufacturers are utiliz