Tag: Alissa Oliverson

The Problem with Chasing Arrows

Alissa Oliverson

by Alissa Oliverson (SWAC Chair), September 2020

Trash Talk Series from Sustainable Klamath, Solid Waste Action Committee (SWAC)

For decades, the general public has been duped into believing that any plastic item bearing the international recycling symbol, known as the Chasing Arrows, is recyclable. The confusion this symbol has created was intentional, and it continues to complicate recycling efforts locally and internationally.

In 1973, top oil and plastic executives received a report stating that recycling plastic is nearly impossible: sorting is infeasible, the recycling process is costly, and plastic degrades every time you try to reuse it. Courtroom discovery documents from 1974 contain a speech from a plastic industry insider, which states that there is “serious doubt that [recycling large quantities of plastic] can ever be made viable on an economic basis.”

But despite these and other all-too-true warnings, big oil and big plastic went ahead with the production of more and more virgin plastic, without a viable plan for its end-of-life. The plan they did have, was a plan to confuse the public and advertise their way out of any negative associations we had started to make with plastic.

We have all seen the international recycling symbol known as the Chasing Arrows, three arrows forming a triangle with a number inside, stamped on the bottom of just about every piece of plastic we consume. But this symbol does not indicate that a product is actually recyclable. It only indicates the type of chemicals used to make the plastic.

Nevertheless, the plastic industry lobbied to have the symbol stamped on every plastic item, even if there was no way to recycle it. Industry insiders have spoken out about why the Chasing Arrows and other campaigns, like the Possibilities of Plastics ads were used. They knew that if the public thought recycling was working and applied to the vast majority of plastic, we would be less concerned about the environment and therefore, we would continue to buy the plastic they were producing from virgin materials at huge profit gains. Today, we call this method of deception: greenwashing. The plastic industry has known about the confusing effect of greenwashing all along, and they continue to take advantage of it to this day.

So, what are we consumers to do? How can we know which plastic items are truly recyclable and which are not? Loads of recyclables that are contaminated with improper plastics make the already cumbersome recycling process even worse. Is there a nationally or internationally standardized list of recyclable plastics? No, not really. It turns out, the best way to know what is currently recyclable is to know what your local recycler will and will not take.

Here in the Klamath Basin, we rely on Waste Management to collect our recyclables, and lucky for us, they provide a handy infographic that shows us what to put in our recycle bin and what to keep out. If you have lost your copy of this valuable flyer, or if you never received one, you can find it on the SWAC page of Sustainable Klamath’s website at: SustainableKlamath.org. You can also request a copy from Waste Management directly.

Be skeptical when you are shopping and considering items that feature the Chasing Arrows -remember that this symbol does not mean the item is actually recyclable. Find alternatives to plastic, like buying in bulk with reusable containers. Write to your favorite companies/brands and ask them to change their packaging so that it is universally recyclable. And consider telling companies like Dow, DuPont, Procter & Gamble, Exxon, Chevron, The American Chemistry Council, and others that using the Chasing Arrows indiscriminately is an unacceptable and environmentally irresponsible greenwashing tactic that you will not stand for.

Now that we are aware of the deceptive marketing techniques of big oil and big plastic, it is up to us to see through their chicanery, demand change, and do our best to stay up to date on what our community collects for recycling. It’s not our fault that we were fooled. The oil and plastic industries spent millions to pull the wool over our eyes. But now that we know better, we must act on that knowledge and do our part.

Margaret Mead once said, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” Sustainable Klamath is a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens based in Klamath Falls, working to provide education and actionable opportunities that help make our community and our world a healthier, more sustainable place. You can stay informed on our work, donate, and find out how to join us by visiting our website at: SustainableKlamath.org.

Knowledge is Power… and so is Trash!

Alissa Oliverson

by Alissa Oliverson, February 2020

Trash Talk Series from Sustainable Klamath, Solid Waste Action Committee (SWAC)

Renewable Natural Gas (RNG), produced by the natural decomposition of your trash, is providing power to 3,000 homes in the Rogue Valley. In the future, it will also fuel an entire fleet of garbage trucks, and more…

As you may have learned in a previous Trash Talk segment, Klamath County is under a contract with Rogue Disposal and Recycling, which permits Rogue Disposal and Recycling to transport our trash to their Dry Creek Landfill in Jackson County. What you may not know is how Rogue Disposal and Recycling is putting all that waste to use.

Every day, an average of 90 tons of trash is transported from Klamath County to the Dry Creek Landfill in Eagle Point, where Rogue Disposal and Recycling has been working on a closed-loop plan for over a decade. 

“Closed-loop” is a term that refers to a system in which a business will reuse the same materials over and over again to create new products. It’s an increasingly popular business model that diverts materials from the landfill and streamlines production. But in this case, where the Dry Creek Landfill is the business and the trash in the landfill is the material, closed-loop refers to the disposal stage being fed back into the creation of a new product. And that new product is fuel.

When organic materials in solid waste decompose, they produce biogas – and that biogas can be used in many ways. Right now, the Dry Creek Landfill Gas-To-Energy Facility captures biogas from the landfill and uses generators to produce 3.2 megawatts of renewable electricity, which Rogue Disposal and Recycling sells to Pacific Corp., ultimately providing power to more than 3,000 homes in the Jackson County area, annually. 

In the future, Rogue Disposal and Recycling plans to do even more. They plan to refine their biogas into a high concentration of methane called Renewable Natural Gas (RNG), and eventually fuel their entire fleet of garbage trucks with it. 

Currently, the majority of their fleet is fueled by Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), which is derived from fossil fuels. The only difference between CNG and RNG is the source of the gas: CNG comes from fossil fuels extracted from beneath the earth’s surface, whereas RNG comes from the decomposition of organic matter. This means that any vehicle able to run on natural gas can take both CNG and RNG. This also means that, in regard to infrastructure, changes must be made to support CNG (or natural gas in general) before RNG can take over. 

By 2023, Rogue Disposal and Recycling projects that they will have achieved a large part of their closed-loop plan by having converted their entire fleet of garbage trucks to CNG. And eventually, they will fuel their natural gas-powered fleet exclusively with the RNG they produce in their own Gas-To-Energy Facility at the Dry Creek Landfill. The infrastructure innovations required to harvest, refine, and use RNG are projected to take about a decade to complete, but some of them can already be seen today. For example: Rogue Clean Fuels, part of the Rogue Waste family of companies, has built a CNG fueling station on Antelope Road that is open to the public, and it is accommodating a growing list of area companies that also use CNG to power their fleet vehicles.

Rogue Disposal and Recycling’s ultimate closed-loop solution stands to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by recycling carbon that is already in the atmosphere; and with its ability to produce more than 2 million diesel-equivalent gallons per year, it also has the potential to fuel other clean-burning facilities and vehicles throughout Southern Oregon.

So, why is this important to us here in Klamath County? After all, Rogue Disposal and Recycling doesn’t pick up our curbside trash – we use Waste Management for that. And our homes are not receiving power from the Dry Creek Landfill Gas-To-Energy Facility. 

Knowing that your properly managed trash could legitimately provide power to your home, business, or vehicle in the future, all while helping to keep our air and environment clean for future generations, provide jobs, and replace problems with solutions is a huge deal! Rogue Disposal and Recycling’s mission can serve as a positive example for surrounding communities, like ours. 

While we want to recycle as much as we can, we should also remember that even when we can’t recycle something, we can still put it to good use by disposing of it properly. So, be sure to follow our local Waste Management guidelines for recycling, and when in doubt, throw it out. 

While you’re following guidelines and discovering the wonderful world of waste management, why not also take a walk once a week and help to beautify our community by picking up litter as you go? Not only will you support your own health with physical activity and build community pride, but by placing litter in appropriate trash cans, you’ll also be helping to make power at the Dry Creek Landfill and you’ll be supporting a future that is filled with positive possibilities for generations to come.

If you need more information on what can and cannot be recycled here in Klamath County, please refer to the SWAC page of our website: Solid Waste Action Committee.

And if you want more information about Rogue Disposal and Recycling, please refer to their website at: RogueDisposal.com.

Remember: knowledge is power… and so is trash!