General

Q: What materials are included in the WasteWi$e program?

A: WasteWi$e is a municipal solid waste program focusing on reduction of materials that would otherwise end up in your trash dumpster. We also want to reduce materials that would end up in your customers' trash, if your firm's products or mailings eventually are discarded. Some examples of typical materials are corrugated cardboard, office paper, food scraps, packaging, and wood pallets. The program does not include hazardous or industrial waste or recycling of materials within a manufacturing process.


Q: What kind of technical assistance will EPA provide to help me get started?

A: A WasteWi$e hotline and electronic bulletin board will answer your questions about joining and implementing the program. In addition, you will receive business case studies and other materials to assist in planning your waste reduction program shortly after joining WasteWi$e. Although limited resources prevent EPA from visiting your offices to personally conduct a waste assessment, you will receive A Business Guide for Reducing Solid Waste to assist you in conducting a waste assessment. Tip sheets and program updates will be distributed periodically and be available through the bulletin
board.

Q: What kind of public recognition does WasteWi$e provide to member companies?

A: EPA will provide the press with news stories and program updates on the collective behalf of member companies. Likewise, EPA will attempt to place notices (such as WasteWi$e public service announcements and special supplements) in trade publications, environmental magazines, and business journals. By distributing ready-to use WasteWi$e materials, EPA will encourage members to publicize their participation. Members also may use the WasteWi$e logo in their own advertising. in addition, special recognition will be provided for exemplary programs on a regular basis. Sign-Up


Q: Who signs the WasteWi$e registration form for my company, and do all company facilities have to sign up at once?

A: Any senior company official able to commit all or some of your facilities to a waste reduction program can sign the registration form. It is also helpful if this person can effect changes in company operations like purchasing and facilities management. The WasteWi$e challenge can be taken by your entire company or by individual segments, such as corporate headquarters or a specific region, division, or facility. If your initial commitment does not apply to your entire company, please specify which divisions or facilities will be participating in the program.


Q: My company is a member of another solid waste challenge program. May I still join WasteWi$e?

A: Yes! EPA applauds and strongly supports existing programs that promote one or more aspects of waste reduction. Such programs include the Conference of Mayors' National Office Paper Recycling Project, the National Recycling Coalition's Buy Recycled Business Alliance, and the Coalition of Northeastern Governors' (CONEG) Challenge to Reduce Packaging. Under these and other programs, many companies have taken the initiative to prevent waste, recycle, or buy and manufacture recycled products. If you have recently made a commitment under one or more programs, it is very likely that your actions will satisfy the parallel WasteWi$e component. We'll be happy to work with you to build on such efforts.


Q: My company has already made significant progress in reducing waste, recycling, and buying or manufacturing recycled. Do our past achievements qualify us for WasteWi$e membership?

A: EPA applauds the efforts of those companies that have taken the lead in waste reduction. We would like to hear about your earlier progress so that we may publicize exemplary efforts and share your successes with other member companies. The goal of WasteWi$e is to spur additional progress in business waste reduction nationwide. Therefore, we ask that new or expanded waste reduction initiatives be implemented for WasteWi$e membership. Implementation


Q: How long do I have to achieve my WasteWi$e commitments?

A: The amount of time it takes to meet your WasteWi$e goals is up to you. It may take some time to get your waste reduction program up and running to the point where you have measurable results. Regardless of where you are in the process of implementing your program, EPA would like to hear from you at least once a year. Let us know about the progress you've made and obstacles you've encountered in implementing your waste reduction program. Once your program is established, we would like to receive the following estimates each year by March 1: Waste prevented (weight or volume). Recyclables collected (weight or volume). Amount spent on products with increased recycled content or the increased amount (in terms of dollars or weight) of postconsumer content in products that you manufacture. We will provide a simple form for you to use to report these estimates. Each year, EPA will compile WasteWi$e results into a progress report. Beginning after the first year of the program, EPA will provide special recognition on a regular basis for companies that have achieved outstanding results and supported this progress with numerical estimates. Waste Prevention


Q: WasteWi$e requires companies to undertake three "significant" waste prevention actions. What qualifies as "significant"?

A: Although you will be the ultimate judge of which actions are significant and feasible for your company, significant waste prevention actions generally will result in a substantial reduction in the material being targeted. For example, office paper is one of the largest components of many companies' waste. A significant effort to reduce paper usage probably would be composed of several smaller efforts such as double-sided copying, posting memos rather than routing to individuals, and reducing the number of "all employee" memos. Companies have found that these paper reduction activities can dramatically reduce paper consumption, sometimes by hundreds of tons per year. EPA will share examples of waste prevention programs that other companies have implemented and view as significant for their operations. Based on these examples and your firm's waste assessment, you can then decide what actions are significant for you. Recycling


Q: My company already has a great recycling program. We collect office paper, metal cans, glass, and plastic. What can I do to expand or improve my program?

A: EPA recognizes that some companies already have well-developed collection programs. There are several potential ways to improve even the most comprehensive collection programs. First, check your operations to see what additional materials could possibly be collected (e.g., corrugated cardboard) and see if local markets make collection of these materials cost-effective. If collecting additional materials is not feasible, you could make sure that your collection program has been expanded to all possible facilities and offices, try to increase the proportion of each material you are already collecting, or decrease contaminants (e.g., colored paper in the white paper bin) through more employee education. For example, if your company has an orientation course for new employees, you could incorporate information on recycling. Where in-house recycling is well developed, you might also consider providing community education and outreach on recycling. Buying or Manufacturing Recycled Products


Q: When buying recycled products, does both the preconsumer and postconsumer content of the products count as recycled content?

A: Yes, EPA:s goal is to increase the total amount of recycled content in purchased goods, both preconsumer and postconsumer material. In order to provide additional incentive to manufacturers to use materials collected from business and community recycling programs in their products, WasteWi$e does encourage increases in recycled content to consist of postconsumer material.


Q: For manufacturing purposes, what is a postconsumer recovered material?

A: A postconsumer recovered material is a finished product or other material that has served its intended use and has been discarded for disposal or recovery, having completed its life as a consumer item. Postconsumer materials do not include those materials and by-products generated from, and commonly reused within, an original manufacturing process.


Q: What would my company do if it chooses the "manufacturing recycled" option?

A: Identify the product or product lines that you believe can accommodate increased postconsumer material and each year report your progress in achieving this increase. When you have achieved your goal, report the increased percentage of postconsumer content and the total increase in postconsumer material (in dollars or weight) attributable to the increased percentage. For example, if your company increased a product's postconsumer content from 10 to 15 percent, you would report the 5 percent increase and the dollars spent on acquiring the additional postconsumer material for all units of the product (or if this information is confidential, the weight of the additional postconsumer material).