Montanans generate nearly 66 percent more waste (7.26 pounds per day) than the national average (4.38 pounds) and recycle less of that waste (21.9 percent) than the average American (34.5 percent), according to statistics from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Montana Department of Environmental Quality.
And Missoula residents lag behind the average Montanan, recycling only about 19 percent of their waste products.
There are several logical reasons why Montanans put more garbage into landfills. A small population makes it less financially feasible to build large recycling facilities, and Montana is far removed from major urban recycling centers.
But there is still work to be done.
That’s why the Sustainable Business Council, a nonprofit advocacy organization in Missoula, created an online guide titled “Moving Missoula Toward Zero Waste” with information and ideas for taking manageable steps toward addressing the issue.
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“Producing minimal waste is not only possible, but it is also smart financial management,” said Jenny Mish, executive director of the SBC. “The guide provides evidence of hundreds of local and national businesses, events, individuals and cities that are dramatically reducing wastes and costs and earning revenues from recycling streams.”
Mish cited several examples of businesses that take steps to reduce waste. For example, Providence St. Patrick Hospital diverts 1 ton of waste daily from the landfill, saving $300,000 per year compared to the average hospital.
During the month of April, the SBC held numerous events aimed at informing people about ways they can recycle more.
“We got a lot of community response and we were delighted to have so many community sponsors and event hosts,” Mish said. “I appreciated the interest and buy-in. There are a lot of Missoulians who really understand how important this is. I think community efforts like this are what gradually change behaviors.”
Mish said that many studies have found that recycling produces many more jobs than landfills or incineration. For example, a 2011 study from the Tellus Institute found that a 75 percent diversion rate would produce 1.1 million more jobs than the current status quo, while also reducing pollution.
Another study from the Closed Loop Fund found that sorting and processing recyclables creates 10 times as many jobs as landfills or incinerators, and reusing computers creates 296 times as many jobs.
Opportunity Resources Inc. in Missoula recently opened an electronics recycling facility that will employ up to 15 people.
“Whether you manage a household, a multinational corporation, or anything in between, waste is a measure of inefficiency,” said Mish. “Nature is the most efficient model there is for using waste as a resource and designing systems to reap the benefits at any scale."
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There are challenges to changing behaviors in Montana, Mish admitted.
“Our community members need to know about contamination in the recycling stream, so we don’t have to throw away recycling bins because someone threw something non-recyclable in them,” she said. “We don’t have a way to recycle food scraps other than backyard compost piles. We have some dramatic numbers and some structural challenges.
"Our small population means we can’t get enough volume to afford to build a commercial composting facility or a glass recycling facility. We are the end of the line in a lot of ways in terms of transportation to get recyclables to a larger facility.
"There are inherent challenges. But if our community is aware of what we can do, there has been a really strong response in terms of people being excited.”
To view the online guide, visit sustainablebusinesscouncil.org/TZWguide.
