Recycling Helps San Francisco Win Greenest U.S. City Award

20 July 2011 San Francisco has scooped the accolade of 'greenest' major city in the U.S. and Canada Green City Index. New York, Seattle, Denver and Boston completed out the top five U.S. cities. The study conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), and commissioned by Siemens, assesses and compares 27 major U.S. and Canadian cities on environmental performance and policies across nine categories - Waste, CO2 emissions, energy, land use, buildings, transport, water, air quality and environmental governance. The 27 cities selected were chosen to represent a number of the most populous metropolitan areas in the United States and Canada. The list includes the top 20 U.S. combined statistical areas, and the top 5 Canadian census metropolitan areas. Expert panelists suggested the addition of Miami and Phoenix due to population and growth rates. Waste In terms of the cities performance on waste, the study found that most of the surveyed cities have robust waste policies and do very well in terms of recycling when compared with global figures. "Generally speaking, American cities fared well as compared to other global regions in the areas of air and waste policies as well as recycling and water infrastructure," said Tony Nash of the Economist Intelligence Unit. Nine out of 27 cities get full marks in all waste policy areas and only one city scores no points. The vast majority has at least some version of selective disposal mechanisms and sustainable waste management practices. The proportion is similar to the European cities of similar income. Across all the cities in the study, an average of 26% of waste is recycled, compared with 28% in the wealthier European cities. Two cities, San Francisco, at 77%, and Los Angeles, at 62%, recycle a higher amount of waste than any city in the European or German Green City Index except one, Leipzig, at 81%. Two other cities recycle over half of their waste - Vancouver, at 55%, and Seattle, at 51%. The study found that although all European cities of similar income have comprehensive waste reduction strategies, only 14 of 27 US and Canada Index cities do, suggesting that waste reduction has not received as much priority in North America as it has in Europe. However, the authors of the study claims that inconsistencies in the way different cities measure waste generation make it impossible to do meaningful comparisons. It is therefore unclear how well Index cities reduce waste. The study concludes that whether or not they reduce waste, however, US and Canada Index cities certainly recycle. Recycling: Popular laws have dramatic effects In 2009 San Francisco recycled 72% of its waste, already far ahead of any city in the US and Canada Green City Index. But how did it achieve this? According to the study, the city owes much of its success to its proactive policy stance. San Francisco had long recycled a wide range of different materials, and had charged residents and businesses on a pay-as-you-throw basis for non-recyclable garbage, which encouraged waste reduction. San Francisco wanted to meet a longstanding goal to recycle 75% of waste by 2010. Officials also wanted to reduce the amount of compostable material in the city's waste, which made up more than a third of the total material discarded by city residents. Unlike many cities in the US, in order to achieve its recycling targets, San Francisco put mandates in place. In 2009 the city required residents and business owners to separate recyclable materials from waste using special curbside containers. At the same time, the city mandated a similar separation of compostable material, the first such regulation in the US. The study's findings conclude that the impact of these moves was significant - total recycling went up to 77% and composting rose from 400 tons (362 tonnes) a day before the law went into effect to 600 tons (544 tonnes) each day in the year following the ordinance. This is not the first time San Francisco has used regulation to address waste issues. In 2007 the city prohibited major grocery and pharmacy chain stores from giving out plastic shopping bags. The city estimates that the law has reduced its plastic bag waste overall by 15% to 20%, or roughly five million bags per month. The politics of such restrictions are not always easy. In the run-up to the recycling law, there was some concern over the proposed maximum fine of $1000 for individuals, so it was reduced to $100. However, the study concludes that for the most part the law seems to be very popular. The city was surprised by how many people began sorting compostables well before it came into effect, and by December 2010 not a single individual or business had required a fine for non-compliance, which is monitored by city officials. Sign up for Waste Management World's Free E-Mail Newsletters