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20 Dec 99 - state waste prevention efforts; packaging; curriculum; Starbucks ** WASTE PREVENTION FORUM ** -- A project of the National Waste Prevention Coalition -------- Forum archive: http://www.reuses.com/nwpcarchive --------------------- >From Julie Schmitt, Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, Portland, OR: The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality Solid Waste Policy & Program Development section has recently formed a new Waste Policy Leadership Group (WPLG). We are interested in getting information to the group about what states other than Oregon are doing in the area of waste prevention/waste reduction/resource efficiency. We are particularly focusing on getting beyond "reduce, reuse, recycle" by looking at waste prevention and resource efficiency. Here are the type of questions we're asking about other states' programs: - Do you have a waste prevention/resource efficiency/waste reduction program in place? - If so, what audience is being targeted. Commercial? Residential? - Is the program regulatory or non-regulatory? - Does your state have legislation in place or proposed? We're interested in hearing how your program works, how it's staffed and funded, how you measure results, what you've learned, etc. I'm also very interested in receiving any copies of legislation in effect, or proposed legislation that might have failed (why did it fail?). We would also like to have contact names, addresses, phone numbers, e-mail addresses and website addresses. I'd be happy to have folks give me a call to discuss their (not necessarily limited to state government) programs, state goals and objectives, funding, staffing, etc. Oregon's Waste Policy Leadership Group is described on this web page: http://www.deq.state.or.us/wmc/solwaste/wplg.html The members of the group are listed on a connected page. Thank you for your interest and help. E-mail: SCHMITT (DOT) Julie (AT) deq (DOT) state (DOT) or (DOT) us Phone: (503) 229-6922 --------------------- >From Jim Haynes, Spokane Regional Solid Waste Systems, Spokane, WA, responding to the 12/15/99 posting from a packaging industry publication, describing how Mrs. Paul's has reduced the packaging for one of its food products, but could have reduced it even further except that then "there would not be room for cooking instructions or serving suggestions": Why not print additional instructions on the inside of the packing? E-mail: JHaynes [ A T ] SpokaneCity [ D O T ] org --------------------- Excerpted from a press release from the Center for Energy & Environmental Education (CEEE) at the University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, IA, following up on a 12/15/99 posting: A curriculum, designed to help recycling coordinators educate adults about waste reduction, is now available from CEEE. The curriculum will be used in a workshop planned for March, 2000, in Hills, NE. Susan Salterberg, director of the CEEE's Simple Living Initiatives, is the author of the curriculum, called "Waste Reduction: Addressing the Overlooked 'R'." It has six lesson plans dealing with topics such as de-cluttering, saving money and reducing waste, and simplifying with children. The packets also contain more than 35 overhead and handout masters, a six-page list of resources, and facts on waste, recycling, and sustainable consumption. The packets are available through the CEEE at a cost of $15 each, including shipping and handling. Funding for this project was provided in part by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 7. For more information on the curriculum, please contact the CEEE by e-mail at ceee (AT) cns (DOT) uni (DOT) edu or by phone at (319) 498-4516 or 273-2573. --------------------- Excerpted from a 12/11/99 national business item on the Spokane Spokesman-Review's website (first seen in Jim Schrock's Delete This Newsletter): STARBUCKS GIVES UP ON CUP INNOVATION After more than a year of research, the huge Starbucks chain of coffee houses has decided to abandon a prototype coffee cup designed to be more environmentally friendly. With the aid of environmental groups, the company tried to come up with a way to cut down on "double-cupping," the practice of using two cups to keep hot coffee from burning customers' hands. Now the company will use a standard cup and an add-on cardboard sleeve, which the vast majority of stores already use, Starbucks spokesman Chris Gimbl said. The prototype cup, tested in a total of 40 stores in Seattle and San Francisco, was a standard cup with the cardboard sleeve built in. The company would not comment on how much money went into the research effort. "(The prototype) was about the same waste level as the cup and sleeve separately," Gimbl said. Customers can still request an additional cup, he added. - end -