Going green: Alaska Waste and Green Star innovative leaders.

• Author: Freeman, Louise
• Position: SPECIAL SECTION: ENVIRONMENTAL - Company overview

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As local businesses become more attuned to the green economy, many are trying out new ways to make their products and business practices more earth-friendly by reducing waste, recycling and curbing pollution. Alaska Waste is at the forefront of innovative recycling efforts in the Anchorage area.

NEW PROGRAMS

In one of the bays at their Anchorage facility, a cylinder 32 feet long and 10 feet in diameter continually rotates at slow speed, converting waste into a rich organic soil additive in seven days. The composting service, a new pilot program, is not offered to area households because Alaska Waste has to carefully monitor what goes into the composter. Two local grocery stores provide waste produce, which is mixed with shredded paper, cardboard, wood chips and horse manure.

Another new development at Alaska Waste is their biodiesel processing plant. Used cooking oil from local restaurants is processed into biodiesel for use in their fleet of 50 trucks. The three-part goal is to save money, reduce carbon emissions and make use of a renewable resource, according to Jeff Jessen, renewable resources program administrator.

CURBSIDE EXPANSION

In addition, curbside recycling through Alaska Waste has expanded over the last three years and is now available to 40,000 households in Anchorage, Eagle River and on Elmendorf Air Force Base. Four thousand households currently participate in the optional program. Even with only 10 percent participation, 2.5 million pounds of waste were diverted from the landfill in 2009. Alaska Waste's goal is to get participation up to 25 percent.

"Our hope is that the curbside makes it a lot more convenient. It's in their home, they can get kids involved," said Katy Suddock, recycling coordinator at Alaska Waste. "We haven't gotten as many people as we would hope. It's interesting we don't get the take rates as in Lower 48. It's an educational process."

The Municipality of Anchorage has a similar recycling program, which covers 20 percent of the households and commercial establishments in Anchorage. Their service area is north of Tudor Road, with pockets in a few other neighborhoods.

In the spring of 2008, Alaska Waste expanded their paper-only recycling program to include co-mingled waste such as aluminum and tin cans and some plastic bottles and jugs (PET No. 1 and HDPE No. 2 only). No sorting is necessary for the customer--it all goes in one 96-gallon tipper cart provided by Alaska Waste.

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