The Solution
Municipal Solid Waste (MSW), more commonly known as trash or garbage, can be managed through source reduction, recycling, and composting. Source reduction involves altering the design, manufacturer, or use of products and materials to reduce the amount and toxicity of what gets thrown away.
Reusing and recycling diverts useful items, such as paper, glass, plastic, and metals, from the waste stream. These materials are then collected, sorted, processed and emerge as new products.
Composting decomposes organic waste, such as food scraps and yard trimmings, with microorganisms (mainly bacteria and fungi), producing a usable substance-fertilizer.
How does recycling affect Climate Change?
Recycling prevents the emission of greenhouse gases and water pollutants, saves energy, supplies valuable raw materials to industry, creates jobs, stimulates the development of greener technologies, conserves resources for our children's future, and reduces the need for new landfills and combustors.
What you can do at home: There are many ways to reduce your waste stream. A good first step is to devise a waste reduction plan, as follows: - Identify your waste streams key components (e.g., food scraps, paper, cans, bottles)
- Organize the list of waste into similar groups, such as paper, plastic, bottles, and foods
- Match this list to the shown here to determine what you can and cannot recycle; highlighting the items that match up.
- Contact your local waste disposal company to get a free appropriate receptacle for each type of waste. For example, if you have space, get three bins for your kitchen; one for trash, one for recyclables, and one for compostable materials (biodegradable trash bags can be purchased online and at most grocery stores). It's helpful to keep a list nearby noting which materials go in each bin.
- Stop your junk mail.
- Reuse cardboard boxes.
- Print double sided.
View the San Francisco Department of the Environment's Recycling Guide for more information about items that can be recycled. Toxic Waste Household items such as batteries, old paints, and pesticides are considered to be toxic waste. It is very important that items like these are disposed of properly.
- Batteries that are thrown away result in heavy metals - lead, arsenic, zinc, cadmium, copper, and mercury - being released into the environment. These metals are toxic and can be harmful to humans and wildlife. When batteries are thrown into the trash, they end up in the landfill. Over time these metals can seep into the ground water and eventually into the food chain.
- These items should be taken to collection spots, such as Walgreens, for proper disposal. Check your city’s environmental department website for more information. See for example: The San Francisco Department of the Environment ; Save the Bay
To find out how to safely dispose of your toxic waste click here.
Waste Disposal Companies in San Francisco Golden Gate Sunset Scavenger
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