Event Recycling
The Event Recycling Project is a partnership between the
City of Portland’s Office of Sustainable
Development and Community Environmental Services (CES) which focuses on
increasing the diversion rate (recycling) at the numerous events which take
place throughout Portland.
The project has been growing at historical rates and is currently supporting 80
plus events yearly in the Portland Metro Region, in addition to all of the
major waterfront events such as the Rose Festival, Blues Festival, Cinco de
Mayo, Brewers Festival, The Bite of Oregon and Race for the Cure. With the main
focus being the collection of bottles and cans through utilization of the
clear-stream recycling container, CES has been able to help event coordinators
divert a large portion of their waste stream into the recycling stream.
For the first time in 2008 the Event Recycling Team will
begin to push for more composting at devoted events. With the Office of
Sustainable Development’s Portland Composts! program in full force,
opportunities have arisen where diversion of food waste from event streams is
now possible. This will be a long road to embark on; however, with evidence that
nearly 60% of the waste stream coming out of events is compostable, it will be a
road worth traveling.
The Event Recycling Project is currently being coordinated
by CES’s Field Services Coordinator, Thomas Egleston and Field Research
Assistant, Ryan Trif. These two have been working diligently throughout the
summers in order to make Portland
a place that recycles at Home, at Work and at PLAY!
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