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26 Nov 01 - job description; patriotic shopping; food; worms; product stewardship; donations ** WASTE PREVENTION FORUM ** -- A project of the National Waste Prevention Coalition -------- Forum archive: http://www.reuses.com/nwpcarchive -------------------- From John Crisley, Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), Boston, MA: LOOKING FOR JOB DESCRIPTION OF A MUNICIPAL SOURCE REDUCTION COORDINATOR I am looking for copies of a job description(s) for either a county or municipal Source Reduction Program Coordinator. Massachusetts DEP has awarded a grant to the City of Newton (population 80,000) to fund its first source reduction coordinator position. This position will be the first-ever Municipal SR Coordinator within Massachusetts. I would like to model this position on similar positions from other local or regional government agencies. Ideally, the job description should be geared towards a department-level coordinator responsible for working with the Public Works, Purchasing, School, and Business Departments. The person's job duties should emphasize departmental coordination, communications, and changing procedures within local government. I would appreciate any information Waste Prevention Forum readers may have. Thank you. E-mail: john [ DOT ] crisley [ AT ] state [ DOT ] ma [ DOT ] us Phone: (617) 556-1021 -------------------- Excerpted from a message from Vicki Robin, New Road Map Foundation, Seattle, WA, to her New Road Map mailing list (forwarded by Marcia Rutan): Each year at this time the media calls for my hints and tips for a simpler holiday. I oblige, having trained myself to take every opportunity to insert my brand of sanity into the contrived joviality of the season of sanctioned gluttony. I talk about volunteering to deliver gifts to families at risk. I talk about our annual neighborhood Christmas caroling. I talk about giving gift certificates for service. In the face of the post 9/11 realities, however, even such homey advice sticks in my throat. Here's what I'm piecing together as the Northwest rain falls outside: - I've read the mounting evidence that a holocaust of starvation is brewing in Afghanistan. - And I've seen posters of the flag with shopping bag handles - shop while others drop! - I know that the average American has $8,000 of consumer debt. - And I've heard "patriotic shopping" repeated so much I'm guessing folks think it's true. - I've watched corporations slough off employees so they can stay afloat while the workers sink. - And I've seen stickers saying, "America, open for business." Are we open for anything else? Know what I think? It's the height of cruelty to whip grieving, confused and in-hock Americans into a frenzy of shopping, claiming that if the whole economy crashes they have no one to blame but their frugal, homebody selves. Patriotic shopping. Humbug. How about patriotic NOT shopping - and sending the money saved to relief organizations? How about a holiday from shopping this holiday season? Someone told me that even President Bush (or his speech writers) has caught the shift in the wind - in his last speech he called upon Americans to give and serve rather than shop and indulge. Maybe Americans don't WANT to shop this season. What do you give to a nation that HAS everything? No-thing. Spirit. The gift of giving - of self and in support of people and projects in need. The gift of not buying - but rather giving. Vicki's e-mail: newroadmap [ AT ] igc [ DOT ] org -------------------- Excerpted from an article in the 11/16/01 Capital Press Agriculture Weekly, Salem, OR: MORE EFFICIENT REFRIGERATORS COULD CUT U.S. FOOD WASTE The United States Department of Agriculture estimates that this country throws away about one-fourth of the food that is produced every year. The greatest waste is right in the home. Food losses no doubt are due in part to the bargains on grocery shelves. Americans spend less than 9 cents out of every dollar on food, far less than any other country. To many Americans, it doesn't matter much when food spoils. But new technology may help reduce the spoilage of food. For many years, food scientists and others have been working to improve food packaging and food storage systems. In the average American kitchen today, the refrigerator is a catch-all. Everything that should be kept at a lower setting than room temperature is thrown in. But the various items may not go together well at all. University of Georgia researchers are developing refrigeration systems so that the climate of certain sections of the refrigerator or pantry could easily be adjusted, depending on what you were storing. In addition, systems could control the natural gases from certain fruits (these gases reduce the shelf life of other types of produce). Bananas could occupy a climate-controlled shelf that would enable them to ripen, but then retain their freshness. Specially-designed fruit bowls could also expand the shelf life of various fruits. Climate control in the kitchen and pantry, and a little additional knowledge by the cook, soon may deprive the landfill of choice produce. Then it can go to healthful human consumption instead. -------------------- Excerpted from a message from Larry Warnberg, oyster farmer, Nahcotta, WA, responding to the 11/20/01 posting seeking examples of on-site worm composting of food waste at office buildings: Since I've had some experience with worm composting, I'll throw in my two cents: Keep 'em outside. Worms are great consumers of organic materials under the proper conditions. But I've seen problems bringing the bins indoors. I'm a volunteer on the Pacific County Solid Waste Advisory Committee, and through that group obtained funding to introduce worm bins to a local elementary school. Small bushel-size plastic worm bins were put in 7 classrooms on a Friday. Monday morning I received a panic call that worms were all over the place. Even with snug-fitting covers on the commercial bins, many worms managed to escape. The company from whom we purchased the bins and worms attributed this to shipping stress. I've raised worms for years in my backyard and never seen such an exodus from their bins. I spent several hours crawling around the floor scraping dead dehydrated worms. Another problem with worms indoors can be insects, especially fruit flies. In an office building setting, I recommend the bins be placed outdoors (in a courtyard, for example), not in offices. Eventually the school worms settled down to business, outside by the playground, where escapees return to soil. I've used various salvaged materials for bins at home, the larger the better. Old bathtubs, plastic cannery totes, 32-gal. plastic trash cans, 55-gal. poly drums, etc. Drainage is important, and a lid to keep the rain out. I like the 55-gal. poly drums, which are also used at the school near the cafeteria for food scraps. They are available free in many areas and have good volume. I remove the bung caps, tie nylon screen over the openings for drainage, turn the drum upside down, cut the bottom off for a lid, and put a bucket of worm-laden compost in for starter. When a bin is full, add another. This modular system will accommodate a lot of organic material. No need to turn the compost, the worms will do the work. Bio-activity is largely temperature controlled: material will accumulate during cool months, decomposition is faster during warm months. A one-year rotation in the Western Washington climate works well. Transfer finished compost to buckets or wheelbarrow to distribute to the landscape, fill planters, etc. Don't fill a whole bin with fresh material at one time. It can generate enough heat to kill worms. Adding a shallow layer at intervals will avoid overheating. If there is a lot of material, spread it around to several bins. A full bin left to work will reduce to about half the volume when finished. Food scraps tend to be moist, so there is usually no need to add extra water, but if the pile looks dry, sprinkle lightly. Shredded office paper makes a good fluffy material to cover fresh deposits of organics, reducing odors and attractiveness to insects. Small amounts of grass clippings or shredded straw can also be used for layering. You might consider placing a shallow drip-pan under the bins if they must be located on an impervious surface. The leachate is great compost tea for plants, but won't be appreciated by the building manager when it trickles across a walkway. Satisfying the concerns of the building manager could be the biggest challenge. You might start small to demonstrate the process, persuading the manager that you are not creating an unsightly mess, health hazard, or more work for the building staff. E-mail: warnberg [AT] pacifier [DOT] com -------------------- Link to the Pacific Northwest Pollution Prevention Resource Center's new product stewardship website (forwarded by Michelle Gaither): http://www.pprc.org/pubs/topics/epr/ This website contains case studies ("Who's Doing It") and offers "how to" opportunities from the manufacturer's perspective, in life cycle management, design for the environment, product take-back, "servicizing," environmental purchasing, and eco-labeling. --------------------- Link to the website for Charity America, a national service (based in the Boston area) that links potential donors (of any type of item) with qualified non-profits: http://www.charityamerica.com - end -