Thinking for the Future:

The Possibility of Zero Waste
in the Regional District of Nanaimo

Recommendations

In the anticipation that the RDN will soon adopt zero waste as a goal, this report includes a set of recommendations for approaching that goal. Some are optimistic, and belong to a utopian view of a waste-free world, while others are more practical and achievable in the short-term. It is important to realize that many of the changes necessary to achieve zero waste must be made by bodies larger than the RDN, such as the federal and provincial governments, trade organizations, and multi-national corporations. Other change must come from outside any governing body and will be created through increasing consumer awareness and the market pressures that will result from altered consumer behavior.

Policy Changes

As previously discussed, there is much that can be done through policy changes that create cost incentives for waste reduction. A rate structure for disposal that charges for garbage by weight or unit, and renders recycling the less expensive option, is one approach. Another is the aforementioned restructuring of contracts and the expansion of disposal bans on recyclable materials. Before any policies are put in place, though, a study of the existing system should be performed, with content and service void analysis performed. Before a material can be removed from the waste stream, there must be a viable system in place to handle it.

In addition, curbside service should be restructured to allow for more efficient collection. Despite the unpopularity of biweekly collection in Nanaimo, there is no reason that such a program cannot be put in place throughout the district with the support of the Regional District’s board of directors, and intensive public education informing citizens as to reasons behind the change. Biweekly collection would allow for a more comprehensive recycling program and save on fuel costs. Biweekly collection of two cans also introduces the possibility of one day reducing to a one can per two weeks limit, or at least simplifying a linear rate system.

Other policy changes could take place within the Regional District government, outside of the solid waste department. Development and building permit changes could be made to encourage deconstruction of buildings (as opposed to demolition), and ensure the use of recycled building materials. Zoning and permit adaptations could also be made to encourage recycling and waste reduction businesses.

New Programs and Facilities

The formation of a new infrastructure to replace the traditional systems of disposal is imperative if something near zero waste is to be realized. Although we recognize that zero waste does not mean zero garbage, it does go well beyond traditional recycling. A support system for reuse and recovery needs to be established, and more sustainable local recycling markets should be encouraged.

One of the most interesting ideas to come out of waste reduction discussion is that of a resource recovery park. It can take many formats, but this report will include two specific recommendations. The first is to create an eco-industrial park, in which larger scale manufacturing and processing businesses could cluster and cycle resources between them. Each separate entity would contribute its own wastes into the system, such as used chemicals and manufacturing byproducts, and other members of the park would have the opportunity to make use of these resources. Strategic planning would have to take place to ensure that businesses were matched correctly to take advantage of the benefits of such a system, but ideally each would gain access to appropriate resources while contributing no net waste output.

With proper zoning and procurement of land, such a park could be located adjacent to the existing landfill site in south Nanaimo, and be at least partly powered by energy produced from landfill gas. The RDN already takes advantage of this gas on a small scale to power the buildings on site. It makes use of the methane gas produced by decomposing garbage to create heat. Expanding the capacity of this technology would be in keeping with zero waste philosophy, turning a harmful waste output (methane contributes significantly to global warming) into an economic bonus, while conserving other energy sources.

It is important, however, to ensure that the motivation to create energy does not interfere with waste reduction efforts. The methane gas produced by the landfill is largely due to the decomposition of organic material, which should ideally be diverted from disposal by composting. The combination of organics with other garbage leads to contaminated leachate and hinders the natural decomposition process into humus. If the decision to pursue gas recovery methods commercially is made, then organics should be carefully separated from "dry" garbage and placed in a separate bio-reactor site to facilitate gas generation and avoid contamination of other materials that can be used as resources in the future.

In contrast to the eco-industrial park, a smaller resource recovery park could be created in a high density area and take on a mall format. This resource recovery mall would house a diversity of businesses and organizations that contribute to waste reduction, and serve to make diversion easier and more convenient for the public. It would preferably be located in central Nanaimo in order to attract the greatest possible traffic. A possible site could be in the Bowen Road area where the NRE is located, which is zoned for light industrial and would be appropriate for a variety of businesses.

The success of the NRE has relied in a great part on the fact that it provides a "one-stop-shop" where consumers can bring the majority of their recyclables to one location. The resource recovery mall would provide this and more, creating a central hub where people could drop off unwanted items and recyclables, entrepreneurs could draw on these resources as feedstock for their businesses, and members of the public would have access to a variety of retailers in one location. It would contain repair shops, craft businesses that use recycled goods, salvage businesses, commercial recyclers, second-hand and thrift stores, and even rental shops. This resource recovery mall would in essence be an "anti-mall", providing the same benefits to business while encouraging reduction instead of consumption.

In order to ensure the viability of the resource recovery park or mall, incentives for the start up of appropriate enterprises would need to be offered. These would include the procurement of a large tract of land in order to offer leases at cost, and low interest loans that would provide start-up capital. The latter could be provided through a rolling fund, started with a grant from federal or provincial organizations, which would increase its own capital through interest accrued over time.

Depending on the success of the original resource recovery park, similar types of initiatives could be started up in other communities within the RDN. Gabriola is a prime candidate, due to its isolation (from other businesses and recycling opportunities), and the strength of its grassroots recycling group, the Gabriola Island Recycling Organization (GIRO). GIRO could easily become the hub of its own resource recovery mall, which would obviously be tailored to the needs of the community and its small size.

Other waste reduction programs might include:

• a local materials exchange, somewhat like BC MEX, which provides a forum for the exchange between those seeking disposal of goods and those requiring them.
• a similar service that provides a link between disposers and charitable organizations (modeled partially after InKind, finding uses for unwanted food and other necessities)
• a waste auditor program, which would train members of the public to perform waste audits on corporations, institutions, and households, providing information on how to reduce waste production.

The role of the NRE and other non-profits would likely change a great deal as recycling became profitable and private enterprise took over its functions. Nonetheless, the need for public education and outreach functions would remain, and the objectives for which the organization was set up would come to fruition.

Public Education and Community Development

As previously discussed, the change in public perception of waste reduction measures is key to their success. Although it often requires the overcoming of initial resistance to change, it is important to remember as well that a vibrant community provides a forum for advancement and change, and that too often there is duplication of effort in regards to environmental and social causes.

It is therefore recommended that the RDN take a strong role in facilitation of community based advocacy and coordination between different groups operating within the district. The partnerships in education already mentioned are an example of this, as is the funding of grassroots organizations. However, the RDN can take on a stronger role by creating a central position that provides communication between a variety of groups, each of which may have certain objectives in common, and who can be rendered far more effective by coordinating their efforts.

• For example, there are as many as twelve organizations focused on providing food for low income people (which indirectly promotes waste reduction by making use of discarded food) that operate in Nanaimo.

If the RDN could take the lead in facilitating the efforts of these groups, much energy would be saved in accomplishing tasks that could instead be directed towards other activities.

In this way, many of the social and environmental problems within the district could be handled with the minimum cost and maximum benefits, making use of those passionate individuals who currently work with inadequate budgets or time. It goes without saying, then, that it is recommended the RDN make use of such existing organizations to promote waste reduction initiatives, at least until more systemic changes decrease the need for public education.

Advocacy

While many of the programs and policies necessary to reach zero waste are within the power of the RDN to implement, a great number remain outside of our control. In today’s global economy, nothing exists within a vacuum, and we cannot control the products that enter our boundaries or the markets that exist outside of them. Therefore, advocacy of certain changes that need to be made at provincial and federal levels is an important component in a new solid waste plan.

These include:

Extended Producer Responsibility - to promote reduction at source
Minimum Recycled Content Legislation - to create a market for recycled materials
Expanded Deposit/Return Programs - on dairy product and other containers
Standardization of Containers - to improve the chances of reuse and the economics of recycling
Streamlining of Material Types (e.g. plastics) - for greater ease of recycling

Advocacy of other changes that cannot be made legislatively is also necessary. These would most likely target industry, and consist of implementation of the Natural Step and full cost accounting (which takes into account environmental and social costs as well as economic ones in pricing). It is beyond the scope of this report to provide a full description of all the methodologies mentioned, but each in its own way contributes to the ability of our systems of production to become more sustainable and less wasteful.

Other changes that should be encouraged are the principles of industrial ecology, in which one industry’s waste is another’s resource (as in the proposed eco-industrial park), designing for the environment or designing for disassembly (rendering products more durable and parts more repair- and reusable), and the performance of backhauling recyclable materials to be processed off-island when new goods are delivered (minimizing fuel consumption and transportation costs).

Despite the separation of each of these steps, there is really no difference between many of them. They merely describe larger or more targeted approaches to the same ideology. There is also no true distinction between those changes that need to be made by government and those that would be made voluntarily by industry. In reality, these changes will come about only when there is an understanding between the two sectors that waste reduction is a necessity, and can be beneficial to both the economy and the environment at the same time.

In general, the change that must be made is one that turns the focus of our economy from the production of goods to the provision of services. Many entrepreneurs will eventually identify the service that a given product provides, and provide that without selling the customer anything. The same capital flow will take place that exists today, but the emphasis will no longer be placed on the continuous production and distribution of goods. We can facilitate this movement by encouraging leasing, renting, and repairing instead of buying.

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