Last week, Going True Green’s Blog provided information about Electronic waste and recycling. This current blog is about Waste and some numbers associated with what we throw out because we think or consider it garbage.
For my first job after college I was an Environmental Specialist Level Two at a Resource Recovery plant. I prepared data reports on electrical, oil, water, air and steam usage from the overall system that created power by converting recycled garbage to electricity. From the garbage we removed all items that we could recycle before burning the remaining garage to produce electricity that was sold to the power company.
“…glass was recycled by color and when a clear diamond went through the system, alarms went off… “
For example, glass was recycled by color and when a clear diamond went through the system, alarms went off and the system shut down until someone from the accounting department provided access codes to manually remove the stone from its uniquely designated holding bin. Within one year, three diamonds were recovered. Additionally, just over $100,000.00 dollars in coins were sorted and collected from the garbage in one year. Any paper bills were burned in the production of electricity, but I was amazed about how many coins ended up in the trash.
So where do Americans stand today with our garbage? How much are we wasting? Studies have been conducted that sorted and weighted the contents of garbage cans or trash bags. I even sorted out my garbage to compare and I was pleased with my results, yet I can do better.
On average, each American puts into the trash the following:
1.) Items that can be Recycled totaled 24% of the trash!
2.) Items that can be Composted totaled 48% of the trash!
3.) Items that were reusable, such as closet hangers, totaled 6%!
The BOTTOM LINE: Only 22% of the items in the trash, belonged in the trash!!!
Please think twice before you toss something away. We are wasting our waste! At this rate, we will need future companies to go mining in our landfills to recover metals that have run out. Even with a major cleaning project at home, think twice. For the same amount of time it takes to call and find a company to deliver a Dumpster at the best price, you can call your Church, Community Center and a local Non-profit organization to pick up that old kitchen table or sofa. America, we must stop wasting Waste.
Bill Lauto, GTG
Environmental Scientist at
GoingTrueGreen.com
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Mr. Lauto has an Environmental Science degree from St. John's University, Energy Auditor Certification from New York Institute of Technology, and Certification in Thermal/Heating from S.U.N.Y. at Farmingdale. He interned at Equitable Environmental Health that brought him to evaluate the environment at LILCO's Nuclear power plant that never opened. As an entrepreneur, he operates EnergyHotwire.com, GoingTrueGreen.com and holds a U.S. Patent with a Trademark on an environmental and energy-related product.
Mr. Lauto has done and managed thousands of energy audits for homeowners. Not one recommended a single action that implied sacrifice. He never stated once that to save money and energy one must turn down their thermostat and wear a sweater. During the 20th Anniversary of Earth Day, Bill Lauto was the Energy Advisor to the Earth Day Committee in New York. Mr. Lauto was the attending expert witness to the press conferences of former New York’s Major Dinkins and Commissioner Mark Green. His expertise has been utilized by power companies such as: the New York Power Authority and the Long Island Lighting Company as well as by Mr. Mark Green, former Commissioner of Consumer Affairs, NYC.
Mr. Lauto has served as the Environmental and Energy expert on several television news and radio talk shows. He has provided information and consulting services on topics such as: air, cooling, heating, lighting, appliances, recycling stations, solar, wind, bio-fuels, hydrogen and water to: Clearwater, Consumer Report Magazine, European American Bank, Home Depot, LILCO, NBC, Macy*s, New York Power Authority, NYPIRG, Time Warner, EPA, thousands of homeowners, celebrities, small businesses, nonprofit organizations, and many government accounts.
Information about Mr. Lauto, his articles, and work have been published in newspapers across the country, including: Consumer Report magazine, Kiplinger's Financial magazine and Business Ethics magazine. Mr. Lauto has been interviewed by ABC news, the New York Times, Cable News L.I. and was in a special television home audit hosted by Al Roker of NBC, but was never aired due to breaking news.
For over twenty years, Mr. Lauto has been stating that we don’t need foreign oil, we have the technology to make America energy independent. EnergyHotwire.com serves to educate the public for free on how to lower energy cost by 60% or more, while GoingTrueGreen.com uses videos and Mr. Lauto's Blog to help dispel mis-information and provide the facts about truly Going Green.
