Waste Reduction in California: Are We Doing Enough?

By Lucinda Batstone (she/her)

Twenty years ago, California’s waste reduction efforts were nothing more than primitive. The recycling rate was at a whopping 30%, meaning that the 70% of the trash that wasn’t reused or composted was sent to landfills. Although many cities in the state had established curbside programs to encourage recycling, there was no enforcement of city or county-wide intervention programs. The influx of trash imported to landfills created a cascade effect of sorts; not only did the greenhouse gas emissions rise, but the shortage of new disposal sites across the state led to an increase in waste exported out of state. In 1995 alone, California exported 1.5 billion tons of waste to other countries, mostly ones in Latin America and Asia. Essentially, the state was at an all-time low with regard to its plastic pollution management.

Most of these problems were addressed by programs that focused on encouraging recycling and diverting waste from landfills. But was the extent to which they were fixed enough for California legislators to sit back and relax? And even if they do laze off, what can we do as individuals to increase our own participation in the waste reduction process?

I would love to say that California’s endeavors were enough to turn the state’s harmful impact on waste into a beneficial one, but there is too much left unfinished to congratulate the efforts just yet. For example, that 30% recycling rate mentioned earlier? It’s only increased by 10% since the 1990s. While it is a relief that the rate has somewhat improved, this minute amount of change nowhere near reflects the promises in 2011 law AB-341, which mandated that California have a 75% recycling rate by 2020. Granted, certain obstacles like the COVID-19 pandemic have made it more difficult for this law to be carried out successfully, due to fear of the virus spreading to recycling collectors through plastic contamination.

California’s failure to significantly improve in recycling has slowed any progress it could have made in other areas of waste reduction. Previously mentioned waste exports have not decreased in the past 20 years, they have risen even higher. Without a recycling initiative, the state is running out of room to store its waste drastically quicker and to a greater extent than it did in the 1990s. In a similar fashion to exporting waste to other countries in the ‘90s, California now resorts to simply dumping toxic materials into neighboring states where landfill laws aren’t as strict. This is only further evidence that a majority of California’s negative impact on waste reduction stems from the lack of a proper recycling infrastructure; when recyclable waste has nowhere to go, it takes up space in landfills, heightening the demand for exports.  For change to be enacted, we must establish more facilities to process recyclable materials.

All of this is not to say that California is necessarily failing at its waste reduction initiatives; such a statement would be counterproductive in moving forward with these efforts. Instead of solely acknowledging the state’s failures in waste production, we must highlight the big strides that have been made to work on bettering what we’ve already started. California is widely considered a leader in eliminating waste compared to other states, but the work is far from over. Groups such as The Sierra Club, a grassroots environmental organization located in Los Angeles, argue that the state should focus on reducing waste at the source rather than relying on recycling and landfill diversion programs, but most importantly, they advocate for change on a personal, day-to-day level.

Following this logic, there are actions you and your family can take to reduce your own footprint, starting with the three R’s of waste reduction: reuse, reduce, and recycle. Simple actions like bringing bags to the grocery store or using a refillable water bottle are not just environmentally friendly but are cheaper alternatives as well. In the same vein, choosing products that are designed with the environment in mind-- either made from recycled materials or avoiding products with toxic chemicals-- is a slightly more roundabout but worthwhile way to approach reduction as well.

Check your local guidelines for specific recommendations on whether or not to rinse the products you recycle; in most cases, leftover food or liquids in plastic containers could result in the item not being recycled.

Do the best you can to not throw away outdated items. Instead, try to donate them, offer them to friends or family, or repurpose them for your own use. Even learning how to repair a potentially salvageable item of yours that has broken could help in reducing your waste footprint.

Likely the most important thing you can do to make a difference is to advocate for policy change at the local and state level. Contact your local representatives-- city council members, state legislators, congressional representatives-- to voice your support for waste reduction policy. You can send emails, make phone calls, or even attend public meetings to express your concerns. Join local advocacy groups to connect with like-minded individuals. Most importantly, spread the word about day-to-day changes we can make; there is power in community when it’s used to demonstrate the need for policy changes.

California has made several strides towards waste reduction in recent years, but to achieve a more sustainable and circular economy, there is still much work to be done-- work that even you play a role in carrying out.

Citations

Altman, Larry. “Recycling Efforts Take a Hit during COVID-19 Pandemic, but Officials Say Keep Filling Your Blue Bins.” KCET, 19 Jan. 2021, www.kcet.org/shows/socal-connected/recycling-efforts-take-a-hit-during-covid-19-pandemic-but-officials-say-keep-filling-your-blue-bins

California, State of. “California’s Short-Lived Climate Pollutant Reduction Strategy.” CalRecycle Home Page, http://calrecycle.ca.gov/organics/slcp/#:~:text=The%20Office%20of%20Administrative%20Law%20approved%20SB%201383%20regulations

EPA, www.epa.gov/circulareconomy/us-recycling-system

Lewis, Robert. “California Toxics: Out of State, out of Mind.” CalMatters, 25 Jan. 2023, https://calmatters.org/environment/2023/01/california-toxic-waste-dumped-arizona-utah/

Published by Ian Tiseo, and Feb 6. “U.S. Solid Waste Exports from California 2019.” Statista, 6 Feb. 2023, www.statista.com/statistics/597540/california-municipal-solid-waste-exports/

“Toxics, Recycling & Solid Waste.” Sierra Club, www.sierraclub.org/california/toxics-recycling-solid-waste