P14-Waste

5. Waste

Waste accounts for over 10 percent of Chaffee County’s greenhouse gas emissions, including diesel exhaust from waste-handling equipment and methane from the landfill. Strategies to minimize these emissions have the added benefit of minimizing the negative environmental and land-use impacts of traditional waste management practices.

In addition to reducing emissions, energynow strategies can reduce waste management costs through streamlining, enhanced recycling and reduced landfill requirements. Diversion of wood waste could also supply feedstock for biomass energy and generate revenue.

5.1 Paper Reduction

Action
Enact progressive paper use policy.

Implementation
Promote paper conservation practices such as copying on both sides of paper, using recycled paper, developing paperless forms and the use of multiple computer screens.

5.2 Recycling

Action
Support increased recycling and reuse of waste materials

Implementation
Enhance existing paper, plastic, glass and metal recycling efforts at local government facilities.

Partner with Waste Management, Upper Arkansas Recycling and other entities to facilitate single-stream curbside recycling, proven to be the most energy-efficient recycling process.

Enhance existing landfill operations to increase recycling and reuse of waste materials (e.g., wood waste for fuel; compostable waste for farming, gardening and environmental restoration).

Support the addition of battery and appliance recycling to local recycling services.

5.3 Methane Capture

Action
Identify potential for methane capture at landfill.

Implementation
Begin to investigate methane emissions at the county landfill and determine the costs and benefits of installing a methane capture capability. Captured methane could then be used as fuel.