The City of San Francisco only wants one more of its trash does not escape him.
Why ? Because almost all of its trash turns into gold!
13 years ago, the 850,000 people of San Francisco set out on a revolutionary goal.
Which ? That of recycling 100% of their waste in 2020 . Today, the bet is almost won.
And all the efforts made to achieve this goal are paying off. Because recycling waste brings in a lot of money! Explanations:
Everything happens at Pier 86, the nerve center of this efficient recycling system.
Pier 86 is a huge 20,000 m2 hangar whose sole purpose is to recycle everything.
For this, it was necessary to optimize the organization and the mechanization processes as much as possible.
Because Pier 86's mission is to recycle the 1,000 tonnes of waste dumped there every day.
Vast task certainly, but which pays off big! For example, recycled cartons are sold in China and Vietnam to packaging factories.
And a local foundry buys the glass and cans to process them.
Everything is recycled, including organic waste. Because what better way to make good compost?
Local farmers, including the winegrowers who produce the famous Californian wines, have understood this well.
Every day they buy 650 tons of compost through the collection of organic waste.
San Francisco now knows that its garbage is worth gold. So there's no question of letting them slip away!
Today, 80% of them are recycled or sold as compost. It remains to reach 100%.
And to achieve this final objective, we stop at no means.
Thus, fines ranging from $100 to $1,000 can be imposed on San Francisco residents who do not sort or improperly sort their waste.
In addition, the rental of the bin intended to receive the non-recyclable garbage of black color is much more expensive than the other bins intended for recycling.
Logic therefore dictates that residents choose the smallest model of black bin and limit their waste which is not recyclable.
This political will has initiated a virtuous circle, both for the ecology and for the city's economy.
Indeed, this helps to protect the environment by reducing CO2 emissions but also to generate profits and create jobs.
178 people, paid between $40,000 and $80,000 a year, have found employment at the Pier 86 site.
This success is the fruit of a voluntary political decision taken 13 years ago and which has never been called into question.
Like what, it is possible. You just have to want it! Hopefully San Francisco will serve as a model for many other cities.
Now head for 100% recycled waste!
