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OC Waste: Landfills are filling too fast
February 10th, 2010, 6:00 am · 11 Comments · posted by Pat Brennan, science, environment editor
Traveling coffee mugs. Reusable grocery bags. And table scraps? Think compost. 
Landfill operators will launch a $2 million public campaign today to change Orange County residents’ behavior: recycle, reuse, reduce waste to keep landfills from filling up too fast.
The goal of the new campaign, “Waste-free O.C.: Save Room for Tomorrow,” is to persuade residents to cut their waste by 10 percent in 2010.
“It doesn’t take that much,” said OC Waste & Recycling spokeswoman Julie Chay. “You can really make a difference by making small changes in your habits. It’s not like you have to overhaul your life.”
Relying on reusable coffee mugs instead of disposable cups for a month, for instance, would equal about a 10 percent reduction for the year, Chay said.
The campaign centers on a new Web site, Waste Free O.C., offering advice and tips on cutting waste, and a quiz meant to reveal how much you are wasting.
The numbers add up, Chay says, although any real landfill crisis seems a long way off.
Orange County residents generate about 5.5 pounds of trash per person per day. With more than 3 million county residents, that comes to roughly 15 million pounds of solid waste per day. At that rate, the county’s three landfills will fill up by 2067.
So part of the long-range goal is to extend landfill lifetime.
A 10 percent reduction for the county as a whole would equal 1.5 million fewer pounds of waste going to landfills each year.
The public is welcome to attend OC Waste’s campaign launch today at 11 a.m. The launch will be at the Frank R. Bowerman Landfill, 11002 Bee Canyon Rd, Irvine. OC Supervisors chairwoman Janet Nguyen will speak, and a Waste Management truck will be on hand to demonstrate what 10 percent of waste looks like for a typical resident.
To attend, call Chay first at 714-697-4470.
(Photo of trash haulers disposing waste at the Frank R. Bowerman landfill courtesy, OC Waste and Recycling.)
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How many trucks are still bringing waste from San Diego and other counties each day? Eliminating this waste could extend the “life” of the Orange County landfills.
yes why do the dumps charge less to out county trash, that wrong.Who getting money from them .
Do you think that maybe all the new housing developments might have something to do with more trash… I’m just saying – the more homes (not to mention all the existing homes) available in OC the more people that move here thus making more trash. Maybe cutting back on new communities will help with the issue. But that will never happen…
What happened to the Eagle Mountain project?
Sending all of Southern Californias trash to the giant open pit mine via rail and truck
Extending landfill lifetime means more money for the landfill operators.
Yep, that it;s and the recyclers rake in more cash.
cut housing construction to slow down trash production, but no way to stop it its going to happen either way with the increase in the human population.
I agree! Unrestrained population growth = water shortage and landfill shortage, and so on. Stop the population growth in Southern CA! We do not have infinite resources here.
I don’t have anything to say on this topic but if anyone here is an ex-subscriber to the Register and has figured out a way to stop the constant phone calls from the paper’s telemarketers would you please post your strategy. I have tried polite refusal and asked not to be called but it just gets worse. Some days I get two or three calls. It is becoming harassment. Thanks for the help.
What happened to companies using less packaging??
I just recall reading about 15 years ago in Readers Digest that full landfills weren’t going to be a problem and it was all hogwash. Please set me straight conservatives!