by Special Collections Research Center, Swem Library
To support Border Waste Wi$ e’s goal of reducing solid waste in the San Diego-Tijuana Border area, the project partners focused on three main activities:
- Business Assistance
- Training and Outreach
- Information Resources
Many of these activities were geared towards providing technical assistance directly to Border companies, particularly maquiladoras.
Border Waste Wi$ e provided onsite waste reduction and recycling assistance to the maquiladora sector and businesses in Otay Mesa, California. Services included:
- Waste reduction assessments
- Training for specific businesses
- Implementation assistance
We provided waste reduction assessments and other technical assistance to more than 25 large and medium-sized companies including Sony and Hasbro. SAIC’s waste reduction specialists and trained municipal and university staff and students conducted the assessments.
Border Waste Wi$ e trained municipal staff, university staff and students and others on waste reduction. The primary goal of this training program was to enhance the capabilities of local organizations to provide ongoing waste reduction assistance to Border industries. The training program was led by national and international training experts from SAIC and Eugene Tseng and Associates.
In March and April 1996, the Partners held a two-day training session on conducting a landfill composition study and a separate two-day session on business waste reduction and recycling.
The sessions, held at the Universidad Autonóma de Baja California (UABC), were attended by between 30 and 40 people. The training sessions used a comprehensive waste reduction training guide prepared by Border Waste Wi$ e. English and spanish versions were produced.
In September 1996, a third training session was held in Tijuana that focused on fine-tuning the waste reduction assessment techniques used by municipal and university staff and students in the business assistance program.
The Project Partners sponsored the Border Waste Wi$ e Conference held on December 5, 1996 in Tijuana where project results were discussed, additional training on business waste reduction were provided and the companies and other organizations and individuals participating in this project were recognized.
Border Waste Wi$ e developed several information tools to support waste reduction activities of Border industries, government agencies, educational institutions, non-governmental organizations, and other technical assistance providers. These tools and resources can also be used to support non-Border related waste reduction activities. These tools include:
- Border Waste Wi$ e Online, this bilingual website
- Border Waste Wi$ e’s San Diego and Tijuana Solid Waste Recyclers Directories
- Success stories, assessment reports, fact sheets and brief industry waste reduction guides developed by Border Waste Wi$ e.
- Data on solid waste entering the Tijuana landfill that Border Waste Wi$ e partners, including municipal officials and students gathered during several days on-site at the landfill. This data focused the business assistance activities on key waste streams and helped lay the groundwork for characterizing the region’s solid waste stream.
Most of this information is available on Border Waste Wi$ e Online.
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by Noah Scalin
The San Diego-Tijuana Border Waste Wi$ e Project was a binational public-private partnership that helped businesses in this large metropolitan region take advantage of the economic and environmental opportunities of waste reduction and recycling and went from 1996 to 1998.
Border Waste Wi$ e provided technical assistance to manufacturers on innovative ways to increase materials efficiency, and reduce and recycle wastes. Our primary goal was to enhance economic competitiveness and ease the environmental pressures resulting from the region’s large and rapidly growing maquiladora and industrial sectors.
Border Waste Wi$ e helped more than 27 large and medium-sized manufacturers in the electronics, transportation, plastic injection and furniture industries identify methods and technologies to reduce waste in product design, manufacturing and packaging.
Our accomplishments were due, in part, to our industry partners’ commitment to environmental innovation and willingness to share their success stories to inspire other companies.
| Border Waste Wi$ e Partnership |
|---|
| City of San Diego City of Tijuana California Environmental Protection Agency, Integrated Waste Management Board U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region IX Science Applications International Corporation Universidad Autónoma de Baja California San Diego State University |
Goals
- Create and implement a successful binational pilot project to reduce solid waste generated by industries along the San Diego-Tijuana Border.
- Build public-private partnerships based on common interests of solid waste reduction, including cutting material and waste disposal costs, conserving natural resources and landfill space, and supporting markets for recycled materials.
- Spark a long-term commitment to waste reduction along the Border in order to ensure continuation of this project.
- Provide onsite technical assistance to manufacturers along the Border by conducting solid waste reduction assessments, training and implementation assistance.
- Enhance the capabilities of San Diego and Tijuana’s municipal solid waste reduction programs through training.
- Train students and educators at the Autonomous University of Baja California and San Diego State University in waste reduction and business assistance.
- Obtain information and data on waste generation in the region in order to set project priorities and support ongoing binational waste management planning.
- Develop information resources to support the waste reduction activities of Border industries, government agencies, educational institutions, non-governmental organizations, and other technical assistance providers.
- Inspire and provide a positive example for industry waste reduction initiatives in other U.S./Mexico Border areas.
Copied from SQLJ » Recycling Articles
by CraftyGoat
Become a WasteWi$ e Member!
Many U.S. companies have demonstrated that by reducing and recycling materials that would otherwise become trash, they can reap substantial savings, sometimes millions of dollars per year.
EPA developed the WasteWi$ e program to assist businesses in taking cost-effective actions to reduce solid waste.
To accept the WasteWi$ e challenge, your company would commit to achievements that you choose in each of three areas:
Waste prevention
Recycling collection
Buying or manufacturing recycled products
Why Reduce Solid Waste?
Each of the three waste reduction activities offers distinct benefits, both for the environment and your bottom line.
Waste Prevention Waste prevention can save your company money through lower purchasing and disposal costs. It can also save your customers money by reducing what they throw out. Avoiding the generation of waste reduces the burden on disposal facilities, conserves natural resources, and often reduces pollution.
Recycling Collection
Collecting recyclables can help keep large amounts of material out of your company’s dumpster. It can reduce your waste disposal bill and generate revenues from the sale of some materials. Recycling offers some of the same environmental benefits as waste prevention: extending the life of landfills, conserving natural resources, and reducing pollution.
Buying or Manufacturing Recycled Products
Recycled products are of high quality and can be competitively priced compared to virgin products. Buying and manufacturing goods with recycled content helps ensure that recycling will continue to advance and will eventually help lower the cost of recycled products.
Why Join WasteWi$ e
In addition to the benefits of waste reduction outlined above, participation in WasteWi$ e offers several advantages.
- EPA will provide technical assistance via a hotline and electronic bulletin board, “how to” publications, lessons from other companies, and regular program updates.
- Successful waste reduction efforts will be highlighted in EPA documents, business magazines, environmental journals, and trade publications.
- Participating companies also may use the WasteWi$ e logo in their advertising.
- WasteWi$ e provides an opportunity for your firm to be viewed by peers and customers as a leader in environmental initiatives.
Commit to Achieving Waste Reduction Results
Becoming a WasteWi$ e member means committing to achieve results in each of these three areas:
Waste prevention
Recycling collection
Buying or manufacturing recycled products
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