The state of California is providing a free service designed to help citizens and businesses trade their discards -- things that might otherwise end up as "trash."
Why would state government care about your junk? It just so happens there are big dollar savings, and tangible environmental benefits, to promoting trades of discards/trash.
The service works like the classified ads in newspapers and helps people find markets or reusers for materials that were previously discarded. It also helps others find free or inexpensive materials, products, and feedstocks for their business or organizations such as schools or non-profit organizations. Ultimately, these exchanges of items that were once considered garbage promotes not only resource conservation, but a reduction in solid waste that needs to be disposed.
Dubbed CALMAX, for California Materials Exchange, the program features a Materials Listings Catalog. Any business, agency or individual can list in the catalog -- at no cost -- any nonhazardous surplus or otherwise "nonuseful" material that would be destined for the landfill. Anyone interested in any of the materials listed can call the contact person shown in the ad and work out arrangements for acquiring the material. Likewise, anyone who needs or wants any kind of material also can list in the catalog specifically what is being sought. Exchanges, purchases or donations are again freely negotiated and agreed upon between the interested parties. Catalogs are available at no charge.
All the listings in the "available" and "wanted" sections are organized into 15 materials categories, including: Construction, Containers, Electronic, Glass, Metal, Plastic, and Wood. Some materials recently made available include: fluorescent light fixtures, used bricks, buckets, champagne bins, a copier, electric bulbs, hay, horse manure, plastic pellets, used cassette tapes, fabric and leather scraps, clay pottery, 3-ring binders, ink, and sales counters. Wanted items listed were just as diverse: fencing, bleachers, construction and demolition waste, boxes, mosaic tiles, drums, furnishings, an "unusually old water heater," an electrical generator, scrap electronics, paint, flowers for drying, paper, rope, art supplies, lumber, magnets, keys, mannequins and much, much more.
If you are not on the CALMAX mailing list, you're probably losing money. Since 1991, CALMAX saved California businesses over $1.5 million dollars and diverted over 400,000 tons of assorted materials from landfills. |
| Author: Lee Young |
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Author Bio:
Maybe you don't have time to thumb through the quarterly catalog, which could be a great read with your morning coffee. If not, try CALMAX On-Line . Want to put a free ad in the CALMAX catalog, get on the mailing list or learn more? Call the California Integrated Waste Management Board at (916) 341-6603 or write the board at 1001 I Street, PO Box 4025, Sacramento, CA 95812-4025. |
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