United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Policy, Planning and
Evaluation/Solid Waste
and Emergency Response
Pay-As-You-Th row
A Cooling Effect on
Climate Change
The atmosphere that surrounds Earth contains many types of gases, including what are
known as "greenhouse gases. " These gases absorb and retain heat from the sun. Without
greenhouse gases, the average temperature on Earth would be 5°F instead of the current
60°F. A buildup of these gases in the atmosphere, on the other hand, could raise global
temperatures, triggering profound changes in the Earth's climate and ecosystems.
The manufacture and distribution of products and the subsequent management of
solid waste can contribute to the formation of greenhouse gases. For this reason as well
as for other environmental benefits, EPA is encouraging waste reduction efforts. The
Pay-As-You-Throw Outreach Initiative is one EPA program helping to curb green-
house gas emissions by expanding waste prevention and recycling in communities
nationwide.
WHAT \s
PAY-AS-YOU THROW?
Pay-as-you-throw programs break
with tradition by ensuring that
households see and feel die cost of
waste disposal services. Under a tra-
ditional system, residents pay indirectly for
these services through their property taxes or
through a flat fee. With pay-as-you-throw,
residents pay directly for trash services
based on die amount of waste they
throw away—similar to the way that
they pay for electricity, gas, and other
utilities.
When consumers pay for every
bag or can of waste that they generate
for disposal, they are motivated to recycle
more and to look for creative ways to pre-
vent waste in the first place. In communities
that implement pay-as-you-throw pro-
grams, overall waste disposal can decline by
25 to 45 percent on average. In addition,
recycling rates often increase in diese com-
munities, sometimes reaching double or
even triple what they had been before the
program was implemented.
Some residents in pay-as-you-throw
communities change their behavior in
other significant ways. While shopping,
these individuals are more likely to pur-
chase items in bulk and to select products
with the least amount of unnecessary
packaging. Rather than throw items
away, a pay-as-you-throw household is
likely to first look for ways to reuse these
goods or to give them away. Rather than
bag yard trimmings and leaves, house-
holds might choose instead to com-
post these materials in their back-
yards.
EPA is helping local govern-
ments and solid waste managers
foster waste reduction in their
communities by encouraging them
to consider pay-as-you-throw programs.
Through educational efforts, EPA is
spreading the word about the many ben-
efits of pay-as-you-throw programs. EPA
also is providing tools and expert advice
on how to plan and implement a suc-
cessful pay-as-you-throw program and
how to overcome potential barriers.
Printed on paper that contains at least 20 percent postconsumer fiber.
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How CAN PAY-AS-YOU-
THROW HELP REDUCE
GREENHOUSE GAS
EMISSIONS?
T
he waste prevention and recycling efforts
spawned by pay-as-you-throw programs can
help curb greenhouse gas emissions in several
significant ways:
• Diverting materials from disposal. Keeping organ-
ic wastes (like food scraps, yard trimmings, and paper
products) out of landfills reduces greenhouse gas emis-
sions that are released when these materials decompose
in a landfill. In addition, waste reduction diverts plastics
and other synthetic materials from incinerators, reduc-
ing the greenhouse gas emissions that are created when
these materials burn.
• Reducing the harvest of trees. Any actions that
reduce the need or demand for manufacturing new
paper products help curb greenhouse gas emissions.
When used paper is recycled into new paper products or
when less paper is used, fewer trees have to be cut down.
Trees take carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere and
store it in wood.
• Conserving raw materials and the energy
^ expended to retrieve, transport, and
, process them. Making goods from recycled
materials typically requires
less energy than using vir-
gin materials. More effi-
cient production and use of
goods prevents waste and
requires less energy. When
energy demand decreases,
fewer fossil fuels are burned
and less carbon dioxide is
emitted. Simply put, as
more materials are recycled
and waste prevented, less
greenhouse gas is emitted into the atmosphere.
or more
iformation
y-As-You-Throw or
ire information on cli-
mate change and waste
reduction, contact EPA's
RCRA Hotline at 800-424-
9346.
•
How DOES PAY-AS-YOU-
THROW FIT INTO THE
CLIMATE CHANGE ACTION
PLAN?
In October 1993, the Climate Change Action Plan
was initiated to strengthen our country's commit-
ment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The plan
outlines more than 50 voluntary initiatives designed
to reduce emissions of these gases to 1990 levels by the
year 2000. EPA is responsible for encouraging attain-
ment of about half of the reductions under this plan.
An old concept that is gaining fresh support, pay-as-
you-throw is already playing a vital role in helping EPA
achieve the goal outlined above. Close to 2,000 commu-
nities nationwide have already implemented pay-as-you-
throw programs, and numerous additional programs are
expected to start up each year as a result of EPA's educa-
tion efforts. Pay-as-you-throw will to be a significant
contributor to EPA's overall Climate Change Action Plan
goal.
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