Many businesses in California have zero waste goals, plans, and policies.
Zero Waste Principles for Businesses
From the Zero Waste International Alliance website:
- Commitment to the triple bottom line.
- Use Precautionary Principle.
- Zero waste to landfill or incineration.
- Responsibility: Takeback products and packaging.
- Buy reused, recycled, and composted.
- Prevent pollution and reduce waste.
- Highest and best use.
- Economic incentives for customers, workers, and suppliers
- Products or services sold are not wasteful or toxic.
- Use nontoxic production, reuse and recycling processes.
Case Studies and Resources
- Examples of Zero Waste businesses in California:
- Sierra Nevada Brewing, Chico, California
- Tesla Factory, Fremont, California
- Lundberg Family Farms, Richvale, California
- Facts Sheets and Case Studies by Industry
- Green Your Business
- Business Waste Reduction
Certifications
- Total Resource Use and Efficiency (TRUE). A zero waste rating system, formally run by the U.S. Zero Waste Business Council and now administered by Green Business Certification Inc. (GBCI), that certifies business and professionals in zero waste.
- Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute. Cradle to Cradle Institute administers the publicly available Cradle to Cradle Certified™ Product Standard, which provides designers and manufacturers with criteria and requirements for continually improving what products are made of and how they are made.
- California Resource Recovery Association (CRRA). CRRA has partnered with the Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) to deliver a “Zero Waste Principles & Practices” Certification Program for solid waste professionals, recycling coordinators, consultants, sustainability officers, and private and public employees.
For more information contact: Office of Public Affairs, opa@calrecycle.ca.gov