Did you know that 80% of office waste is recyclable? Whether it be paper, plastic, food, or batteries, there are many workspace items that end up in the landfill that can and should be diverted. In Los Angeles, the Grades of Green office is located at a shared workspace called Bizhaus. BizHaus El Segundo recently upgraded its recycling programs by implementing a compost bucket and e-waste collection bin with the help of Grades of Green!
In January 2018, Grades of Green set up a compost bucket in the BizHaus El Segundo kitchen. Members learned that instead of simply throwing away their fruit and veggie scraps in the trash can where it would end up in a landfill, they could instead place these food scraps in the compost bucket where the nutrients would either be composted and returned to the soil or recycled and converted into energy. This results in up to 5 pounds of food waste being diverted from landfills each week!
E-waste items like batteries, keyboards, and phones contain toxins that can contaminate the environment if thrown in the trash and left in a landfill. Instead, these items need to be disposed of in a proper recycling facility. This past school year, Grades of Green eco-leaders Lauren and Gaby implemented e-waste drives at their schools and reached out to BizHaus El Segundo to collect items from all the members. Even after their e-waste drives ended, many BizHaus members realized they still had a lot of e-waste that needed to be disposed of properly. This inspired BizHaus El Segundo to start their own e-waste collection bin. Although it’s been less than a week, BizHaus members are already placing items in the Grades of Green e-waste bin!
Lauren and Gabby inspired an entire business to make an environmentally friendly change. Do you want to inspire your school or community to improve water quality or promote water conservation but don’t know where to start? Click here to learn about Grades of Green’s Fall 2018 Water Campaign!