Nowadays there is a push to recycle as much as possible, because we know that over time, if we are not proactive reducing the waste we dispose of in landfills, our county will be covered in rubbish. It is also much better for our environment.

In 2008, 11.2 million tons of solid waste were disposed of in New York State landfills, considerably less than the 14.1 million tons of solid waste that was landfilled in 1990. As of June 2009, there were 27 active municipal solid waste landfills, 16 active industrial/commercial waste landfills, 18 construction and demolition (C&D) landfills, and 3 active ash monofill landfills within New York State.

Mixed Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) consisting of residential, institutional and commercial waste must be disposed of at a MSW landfill. There are three active ash monofill landfills in New York State. Ash from the combustion of municipal solid waste is disposed of at these facilities. Industrial Waste Landfills are used for the disposal of industrial wastes such as coal ash and paper mill sludges.

While landfill gas recovery facilities collect the gas from the decomposition of solid waste for use as energy, Construction and Demolition Debris that is not processed is disposed of in a C&D landfill. Additional restrictions have been placed on landfills located in Nassau and Suffolk Counties in Long Island.

To find out more visit: www.dec.ny.gov/chemical/23681.html

Reaching for Zero is a plan proposed for reducing New York City’s waste exports to very close to zero by 2024, through a combination of waste prevention, reuse, recycling and composting.

This plan will not only reduce and eliminate the crushing expense of waste exports from the City, but it will also keep dollars spent on waste management circulating within the City’s economy, creating industry and jobs in NY rather than shipping dollars, along with our waste to out of state locations.

With close to 8 million residents and over 12 million people during a workday, New York City produces enormous amounts of waste. 13,000 tons per day are generated by trash and recyclables from the residential and institutional sectors, and another 9,900 tons per day of food scraps, dirty paper, and recyclable containers, from the commercial sector. Commercial construction and demolition debris and fill material are generated in even larger quantities.

New York has thousands of businesses, hundreds of institutions like museums, colleges and universities, and a large number of City, State and Federal Agencies. So when NYC generates waste it is not just in the home, it is on the way to work or school, in public transportation, while visiting government agencies, while shopping at stores and supermarkets, or while at work or play at many of New York City’s recreational facilities, such as parks, zoos, and sports venues.

Since the announcement in 1997 that the Fresh Kills Landfill on Staten Island (which had previously taken all of the City’s waste) would be closed, the City has maintained almost an exclusive focus on exporting waste out of the City to distant landfills and incinerators as the solution to its waste management problems. The costs of waste export to the City are enormous and have risen 91% since 2000 so that they are now over $100 a ton. Following the announcement of the Fresh Kills closure, the City Council and planning committees in the offices of each Borough President made extensive recommendations about how the City should handle its waste. The recommendations, while differing on details, spoke to the need for the City to reduce or prevent waste, to recycle more, to create a larger reuse network, and to compost organic waste. To a large extent, these recommendations have been ignored; hence the Reaching for Zero plan has been actioned.

Find out more about it by visiting: www.consumersunion.org/other/zero-waste/

The fastest growing category of waste in Massachusetts is made up of unwanted consumer electronics - cell and smart phones, computers and monitors, televisions, DVD and MP3 players, pagers, PDAs and other devices.

The National Recycling Coalition predicted that 500 million computers were obsolete by 2007. In Massachusetts alone, 25,000 tons of computers are being disposed, recycled, or placed in storage per year. Until recently, people in MA were discarding more than 900,000 units annually on average, but that number has increased due to the federally-mandated transition to digital television broadcasting. (Note that if you own an analog TV, there is no need to replace it right away, you can extend its useful life by purchasing a digital converter box).

CRT monitors and TVs contain an average of 4 pounds of lead each. Excessive lead and other toxins pose a problem in landfills because they can leach into groundwater. In combustors, the lead winds up in the ash residue, which is in turn disposed of in landfills. Lead exposure has been linked with learning disabilities, behavioral problems and at very high levels, seizures, coma and even death. CRTs have been banned from Massachusetts solid waste disposal and transfer facilities since April 2000.

When you have unwanted electronics to discard, remember that still useful items can be donated to others. Non-working electronics should be recycled to prevent health and environmental risks. Often, your computer will be reused by a charity or school. Or, it may be taken apart and recycled. The different parts of the computer or television are used in many different ways:

• The glass CRT is either returned to a manufacturer and made into a new CRT, or sent to a smelter where the lead is recovered and recycled
• The plastic housing is ground to smaller pieces and recycled for use in various items such as retaining blocks and pothole mix
• Circuit boards, chips, and other parts can be reused to repair or upgrade older electronics or recycled for their scrap value
• Metal components will be separated and sold for their scrap value

For a detailed list of recycling options in your county please visit the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection website: www.mass.gov/dep/