A
national environmental research organization has
responded to the calling of the thousands of indivduals
who are concerned about the soaring amount of waste
generated by communities and businesses nationwide.
The research company INFORM has released a new
on-line resource tool to promote grassroot initiatives
in waste management.
"Whether
inspired by escalating waste disposal costs, garbage-related
public health concerns in our urban centers, or dwindling
natural resources, communities are increasingly finding
it necessary to reconsider traditional wasteful pattern
of materials consumption and disposal," said Joanna
Underwood, President of INFORM. "This new resource
explains why preventing waste before it is created
is the most cost-effective, environmentally sound,
and socially responsible way to address the challenges
of the growing waste system."
The actual generation
of waste is now at
220 million tons today,
up from 88 million
tons in 1960, according
to INFORM data. These
figures serve as a
stark awakening for
what needs to be done
in the area of waste
management.
INFORM's
new Community Waste
Prevention Toolkit
is an interactive program,
designed to help reduce
the amount and toxicity
of materials entering
the waste stream. According
to Emily Brown, Communications
Manager for INFORM, "the
kit is easy to use
and is designed for
everyone citizens to
community leaders and
policymakers."
The
purpose of the kit
is to speed up
the process of implementing
cost-effective programs
that reduce waste.
According to Brown, "the
most important aspect
of the kit is its step
by step guide to building
community support for
waste prevention and
coordinating an effective
campaign." This
feature helps to provide
users with a general
lessons on where to
begin and how to proceed
with their efforts.
The kit also includes
hundreds of links to
waste-reducing and
recycled content products,
reuse and recycling
businesses, and other
useful on-line resources.
For a decade, INFORM
has been documenting
practical ways to apply
the concept of waste
prevention to municipal
and commercial waste
streams. In 1999, the
organization launched
an initiative aimed
at convincing New York
City to take steps
that could reduce its
enormous amount of
waste 23,000 tons a
day of residential,
institutional, and
commercial trash, or
enough to fill the
Empire State Building
in less than a week.
Brown said that the
New York City innitiative
was a huge success
and helped to secure
funding for waste prevention
programs in New York.
The toolkit uses this
innitiative as an example
to show individuals,
companies, and cities
how they too can run
a successful campaign
against waste.
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