| The Business Bulletin is produced by the Washington County Department of Health & Human Services, Solid Waste & Recycling Program. For more information, go to www.WashingtonCountyRecycles.com, call 503-846-3605 or visit the office at 155 N First Ave, Ste 160, Hillsboro, 97124. |
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A recent study by non-profit organization
Keep America Beautiful (KAB) noted that approximately two-thirds of respondents felt, "Recycling is a very/extremely important issue, citing its potential positive impact on the economy, public health, the environment, and waste reduction, among other benefits."
Recycling is good for the economy
Recycling in the United States drives much of our nation's domestic and global manufacturing. According to the
Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries, Inc., the nation's recycling industry is responsible for 471,587 direct and indirect domestic jobs, generating more than $105 billion annually in economic activity. In Oregon, the local recycling industry is responsible for over 7,000 jobs and $1.55 billion in economic impact.
Recycling is good for business
A
2014 Nielsen Global Survey of 30,000 consumers in 60 countries revealed that 55 percent of consumers are willing to pay more for products and services provided by companies that are committed to positive social and environmental impact.
Read more.
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Twelfth International Conference on Environmental, Cultural, Economic & Social Sustainability
January 21-23
Portland
Agent of Change Training Informational Meeting
February 1st
Portland
ResourceFull Use Workshop
May 2016
Email for more information
Association of Oregon Recyclers
June 8-10
Portland
DoubleTree Hotel
Environmental Education Association of Oregon
September 28-30
Sisters
Suttle Lake Camp
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How much do you spend each day, round-trip? Click on the graph to find out.
The Westside Transportation Alliance provides member businesses support for helping their employees get to work without driving alone. For more information, click here.
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Free assistance for multifamily communities
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The Solid Waste & Recycling Program provides assistance and resources, at no charge, to multifamily communities located in Washington County, with the exception of the city limits of Beaverton. To request assistance, email or
call 503-846-3605.
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This publication is produced in cooperation with the cities of Banks, Cornelius, Durham, Forest Grove, Hillsboro, King City, North Plains, Sherwood, Tigard and Tualatin.
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The Washington County
 Solid Waste
& Recycling Program would like to welcome its newest program educator to the department's workplace assistance program -- Sanne Stienstra.
Sanne works with food-generating businesses throughout the county,
with the goal of helping them establish programs for composting and food donation. Before joining the county's workplace assistance program, Sanne conducted education and outreach for the
Eat Smart, Waste Less Challenge.
Sanne recently earned a Master's degree in public administration from the University of Washington in Seattle, where she held a one-year fellowship with the
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Region 10 office working on food waste prevention and other materials management projects.
Welcome aboard, Sanne.
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An introduction to Adelante Mujeres
by Paul Lask
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On the first night of
Adelante Mujeres' 10-week business formalization class, instructor Javier Urenda explains the philosophy of a triple-bottom-line approach to business. Urenda has been starting his course this way for three years now. How this business model plays out in the Latino communities of Washington County was recently explained to me in a conversation with Urenda at his
BESThq office, a shared workspace behind Beaverton City Hall.
According to Urenda, many of those taking the Adelante courses, part of what is called the Empresas program, are new to the triple-bottom-line concept of balancing profit with environmental and social issues in the business world.
Read more.
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Durables over disposables
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On a recent Thursday morning, nearly 75 community members gathered inside the Pearson Community Room above Symposium Coffee for a Tigard Area Chamber of Commerce meeting. The group looked like most other area chambers, with one important difference: Coffee was served using durable, reusable coffee mugs, instead of in disposable paper coffee cups. Why is this important? On average, more than 400 million cups of coffee are consumed each day in the U.S. That's over 146 billion cups consumed annually! That's a lot of coffee. What's worse is that 56 billion single-use coffee cups are landfilled annually nationwide. That's a lot of avoidable waste. Read more.
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Washington County wins award
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Every day, Washington County divisions and department programs provide services to over 500,000 constituents across more than 700 square miles of territory. The County recognizes the role and responsibility of public agencies in creating a healthy and productive organization by protecting, using and conserving natural and financial resources effectively and efficiently. The County was recently awarded the Green Business Award for establishing programs that ensure the sustainable use of
public resources.
The County's sustainability efforts are guided by long-term planning at the agency level. Programs and efforts are implemented by County departments and staff who are dedicated to advancing sustainability in day-to-day operations.
Read more.
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Improve recycling at work
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Over
450 local businesses benefited from
FREE tools, on-site assistance and training provided by the Washington County Solid Waste & Recycling Program last year.
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"Working with Washington County has allowed us to cut our garbage bill by two-thirds."
-- Rick Brunecz, Nortek Air Solutions
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Request technical assistance for your business.
Contact the Washington County Solid Waste & Recycling Program by
email, call
503-846-3605 or
go to
www.WashingtonCountyRecycles.com.
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Drop-off recycling centers
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| Take electronics, rigid plastics and other items not collected in residential or commercial recycling programs, to a drop-off recycling center for little or no charge. Visit the recycling center's website for more information about what is accepted. Far West Recycling - Beaverton 10750 SW Denney Rd Beaverton 97008 503-643-9944 www.FarWestRecycling.com Far West Recycling - Hillsboro 6440 SE Alexander St Hillsboro 97123 www.FarWestRecycling.com Pride Disposal Company, Recycling Depot 13910 SW Tualatin-Sherwood Rd Sherwood 97140 503-625-6177 www.PrideDisposal.com
Recycling alert: Styrofoam
White
Styrofoam products can once again be recycled at Far West Recycling's Beaverton and Hillsboro locations. More information can be found here.
For more information on public drop-off of non-curbside-accepted recyclables, contact the Washington County Solid Waste & Recycling Program at 503-846-3605 or by
email.
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