Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
Available On Air Stations
Watch Live

Zero Waste Goal For El Cajon

El Cajon is the first city in San Diego County to adopt zero waste as a goal. The concept is to use materials that can be re-used rather than tossed into landfills. KPBS reporter Ed Joyce has details.

Zero Waste Goal For El Cajon

El Cajon is the first city in San Diego County to adopt zero waste as a goal. The concept is to use materials that can be re-used rather than tossed into landfills. KPBS reporter Ed Joyce has details.

Reducing greenhouse gas emissions and decreasing air and water pollution are part of the zero waste movement. Zero waste strategies include redesigning products so they have future uses. One example is using paper made from 30-to-100-percent post-consumer waste. Laura Anthony is with the non-profit group Zero Waste San Diego. She says El Cajon will be increasing its recycling efforts.

Advertisement

Anthony: It's showing that the community, the city of El Cajon is looking toward the future rather than looking toward the past like landfills where we're just burying all of our resources.

Anthony says turning waste into other products saves money and protects the environment. She says paper can be made into other products and recycled indefinitely but styrofoam doesn't recycle and clogs landfills.  Anthony hopes other cities in San Diego County will join El Cajon in adopting zero waste as a goal. Ed Joyce, KPBS News.