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Health & Fitness

Trash Talk: Helping Fairfax Achieve Zero Waste

Learn from a panel of experts what Zero Waste means and how you can help Fairfax achieve its zero waste goals.

Is it possible to achieve zero waste?  By looking at our landfills it seems to be an impossible task.  But when you dump out a trash can and inspect every item that is thrown away, there is an alternate solution for most everything.  Learn about the possibilities on Sept. 20 at Trash Talk, a free educational and collaborative event on zero waste hosted by Sustainable Fairfax, and taking place at the Fairfax Community Church at 6:45 p.m. 

The event will feature a dynamic panel of experts from diverse backgrounds:

Kim Scheibly, Outreach and Communications Coordinator for Marin Sanitary Service, will address waste management and landfill practices.  Andy Peri, founding member of Green Sangha and co-founder of Rethink Plastics, will trace the evolution and destruction of plastics in our environment.  Rebecca Burgess, founder of the non-profit Fibershed and author of Harvesting Color, will speak about our sense of place and commitment to our watershed.  Carrie Bachelder, founder of the Away Station in Fairfax, will discuss re-purposing of materials and how to diminish our “throw-away” habits.

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Community members will be invited to help develop creative solutions to reduce common sources of landfill waste, and will leave the event with a concrete action plan in-hand.

This event is part of a larger initiative to help the Town of Fairfax reach its goal of zero waste by 2020, five years ahead of Marin County.  Earlier this year, the Town entered into an agreement with Marin Sanitary Service to divert 94% of waste from our local landfill by the 2020 goal.  To further this effort, the Town contracted with Sustainable Fairfax to hold workshops, coordinate take-back, recycling, and composting programs within the community, and teach residents concrete steps to re-think and reduce what we buy and throw away on our road to zero waste.

Find out what's happening in San Anselmo-Fairfaxwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The zero waste project has seen great successes this year, including an 84% diversion from landfill at the Fairfax Festival.  Come to the event this evening and be a part of the movement that will have an enormous impact on saving our natural resources and reducing environmental pollutants and emissions.  See you on the road to zero waste.

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