Though the U.S. represents less than 5% of the world’s population, we generate 22% of the world’s carbon dioxide emissions, use 30% of the world’s resources, and create 30% of the world’s waste. Our waste production and overconsumption of materials is a key factor in our impact on climate change.

A recent report entitled “Stop Trashing the Climate” posits that significantly decreasing waste disposed in landfills and incinerators will reduce greenhouse gas emissions the equivalent to closing 21% of U.S. coal-fired power plants.

By reducing waste generation 1% each year and diverting 90% of our discards from landfills and incinerators by the year 2030, we could dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions within the U.S. This zero waste approach would reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 406 megatons CO2 eq. per year by 2030 and achieve a 7% cut in U.S. emissions.

“Stop Trashing the Climate” was written by the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, Ecocycle, and GAIA.
http://www.stoptrashingtheclimate.org/

The report states to achieve the climate protection potential of waste reduction, we must stem the flow of materials to landfills and the use of incinerators. Landfills and incinerators destroy rather than conserve materials. For every item that is landfilled or incinerated, a new one must be extracted, processed, and manufactured from raw or virgin resources. Americans destroy nearly 170 million tons of paper, metals, plastics, food scraps, and other valuable materials in landfills and incinerators each year.

Preventing waste and expanding reuse, recycling, and composting are essential to put us on the path to climate stability.

KEY FINDINGS of “Stop Trashing the Climate”:
1. A zero waste approach is one of the fastest, cheapest, and most effective strategies we can use to protect the climate and the environment. This is comparable to leading climate protection proposals such as improving vehicle fuel efficiency.

2. Wasting directly impacts climate change because it is directly linked to global resource extraction, transportation, processing, and manufacturing.

3. Landfills are the largest source of anthropogenic methane emissions in the U.S. Methane is 72 times more potent than CO2 over a 20-year time frame. On a 20-year time frame, landfill methane emissions alone represent 5.2% of all U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. All landfill operators should be required to collect landfill gases though many landfill practices are still imperfect

4. The practice of landfilling and incinerating biodegradable materials such as food scraps, paper products, and yard trimmings should be phased out. Composting these materials is critical to protecting our climate and restoring our soils.

5. Incinerators emit more CO2 per megawatt-hour than coal-fired, natural-gas-fired, or oil-fired power plants. Incinerators are significant sources of CO2 and also emit nitrous oxide (N2O), a potent greenhouse gas that is approximately 300 times more effective than carbon dioxide at trapping heat in the atmosphere. Due to their greenhouse gas emissions, waste policy should focus on waste reduction, reuse and recycling and not incineration.

Photo by D'arcy Norman - http://www.flickr.com/photos/dnorman/3590132503/