Stop trashing resources. New campaign shows garbage isn’t garbage at all

2010-05-18

A new effort to help people see garbage in a different way is rolling through San Francisco neighborhoods.

Glance at a recycling truck in the City today and you may see a truck that looks like the sides were removed. That's because 3D graphics on 20 collection trucks give the illusion that you can see all materials inside.

Near the middle of the image is an outline of a curbside bin filled with environments we want to help protect: a redwood grove, a pristine beach, a lush vineyard nourished by compost made from food scraps.

The idea is to encourage people to see that most material thrown away is not garbage at all. Look closely and you will see paper, metal, glass, and food scraps – all resources that should be recycled or composted.

In recycling, the moment of truth is when you toss individual items in a container. Food scraps (cooked meat, fish bones, eggs and broccoli) tossed in a trash bin go to a landfill, decompose and produces methane, a potent greenhouse gas.

Those same scraps tossed in a green cart go to a modern compost facility, where much of the carbon in the scraps is preserved in the finished compost and returned to the land when the soil amendment is applied to local farms.

Keep an eye out for collection trucks displaying these detailed photographs. They offer a clear view of garbage – it’s recycling.

sourced from Recology--Waste Zero