Yesterday Lane County recognized eight recipients of this year’s Trashbuster Awards, which go to individuals, organizations and businesses that reduce or prevent waste.
“Reduce, reuse, and recycle is not just a phrase for school kids,” said Sarah Grimm, waste reduction specialist for Lane County. “It is THE money making strategy that businesses big and small can employ to maximize efficiency and maintain competitiveness.”
The 2009 Trashbuster Award winners illustrate this strategy perfectly:
- The Product Manufacturer Trashbuster Award goes to Knickernappies. Only four years old, this company’s product has helped eliminate the need to produce and landfill an estimated 300,000 disposable diapers annually.
- The Private Business Trashbuster Award recognizes Peterson Machinery’s employee-driven effort to reduce waste. The company estimates an annual savings of $20,000 in purchase and disposal costs thanks to implementation of electronic ordering and timecard forms, aggressive recycling programs for wood and metal and increased attention to parts reuse and remanufacture.
- The Special Event Trashbuster Award goes to Anne Lkasik, master recycler and zero waste coordinator for two banquets hosted by BRING Recycling. The events served 160 guests yet made less than one bag of trash combined.
- Rick Tromel will receive the Individual Trashbuster Award. Rick has volunteered more than 1,000 hours to help increase reuse and recycling of computer equipment in our community. Rick trains new staff and volunteers, educates the public at community events, and designs and constructs safe, efficient work areas for staff and volunteers at NextStep Recycling.
- The Restaurant/Food Service Trashbuster Award will recognize Lane Community College Center for Meeting and Learning for applying a zero-waste priority to staff training, written policy, promotions, and in contract language with vendors and customers. Beyond basic recycling, on-site composting, donation of reusable food and refusal to use disposable food service wares helps reduce waste.
- The Nonprofit Trashbuster Award goes to NextStep Recycling. NextStep has kept an estimated 40,000 pounds of lead from entering the Short Mountain landfill by reusing and recycling computers and electronics. They have provided more than 250,000 computer and electronic items to low-income, disadvantaged populations, and they develop job skill training and career opportunities for 600 community members annually.
- The School Program Trashbuster Award goes to Robyn Hathcock, University of Oregon Housing recycling coordinator. As a result of Robyn’s efforts, the UO boasts one of the most successful housing waste reduction and recycling programs in the country. Each residence room contains recycling bin with instructions and each incoming student is given a UO reusable water bottle.
- The Lifetime Achievement Trashbuster goes to Ruth Koenig. For 35 years Ruth has facilitated and promoted reuse and recycling in schools, churches and everywhere she goes. She was active in creating some of the earliest recycling opportunities in our community including: the recycling station at Lincoln Community School; the school supplies reuse program; and school lunch composting program at Cal Young. More recently her efforts have developed two reuse programs at her church, Central Presbyterian. One program allows parishioners to bring non-curbside recyclables to church and Ruth (along with other volunteers) delivers materials to the correct local recyclers. The other reuse program is a neighborhood reuse drive timed specifically for the university move-out season. From bread bags for bulk shopping and waxed milk cartons for freezing foods, to old bleachers for hardwood flooring, Ruth demonstrates that reuse can fit comfortably into our everyday lives.
