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The following case studies demonstrate how some New York City Agencies prevent waste and recycle materials. Visit tips for your Agency to learn more about reducing waste, and recycling for information about how to recycle in New York City. NYC Administration for Children’s Services: NYC Department of Business Services: Department of Citywide Administrative Services: NYC Department of Environmental Protection: NYC Department of Health: NYC Department of Sanitation: NYC Department of Transportation: NYC Financial Information Services Administration: NYC Fire Department: NYC Human Resources Administration: NYC Off-Track Betting: NYC Taxi and Limousine Commission:
ALSO SEE composting case studies. While planning their office move, the Administration for Children’s Services (ACS) realized that they would not need all of their existing furniture since the new office space contained modular furniture. Through the Department of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS), they issued a general distribution notice to other City Agencies offering their unneeded furniture. As a result, Agencies needing furniture, such as the Board of Education, Fire Department, Department of Health, and the Police Department, received 1,700 donated items. Telephone directories–going electronic The Administration for Children’s Services (ACS) prints two large telephone directories — one for the entire Agency and another for a particular location within the Agency. To produce the needed number of directories, ACS used over 1.1 million sheets of paper per year. To reduce annual production costs and to prevent paper waste, the Agency now offers both telephone directories online. To accommodate locations without access to electronic communication, ACS still prints a small number of directories, about ten percent of the original number printed. Through this initiative, ACS significantly reduces its paper purchasing and printing costs. See our telephone directory measurement tool to calculate the cost savings for your Agency of switching to electronic telephone directories. Distributing a memo from the Commissioner In April 1999, the Acting Commissioner of the Department of Small Business Services (SBS) issued a memo to all SBS staff reminding them about SBS recycling and waste prevention policies. The memo encouraged staff to participate in several specific activities such as duplex photocopying, reusing outdated letterhead to print incoming faxes, recycling white and mixed paper, and returning unwanted office supplies to the mailroom for reuse by other employees. Establishing a reuse cabinet for office supplies As a participant in the NYCitySen$e Project, the Department of Small Business Services (SBS) initiated a reuse program for office supplies. The Agency encourages employees to return usable office supplies to the mailroom for storage and eventual reuse by other employees. The major types of supplies diverted from disposal included file folders and desk accessories, saving about $800 per year on purchases of new supplies. Reducing the quantity of phone books ordered The Department of Small Business Services (SBS) uses both English and Spanish telephone directories for all five NYC boroughs. When inventorying the directories’ usage, the Agency found that it had 205 telephone directories available for about 140 employees. Through its participation in the NYCitySen$e Project, SBS determined that it could reduce the number of telephone directories by 97 books, or 47 percent. SBS now requests only 108 directories. Since each telephone book weighs about 3 pounds, by ordering fewer books, SBS diverts approximately 290 pounds of waste from disposal. Electronic distribution of requirement contracts and storehouse catalog The Division of Municipal Supply Services (DMSS) within the NYC Department of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS) developed a searchable database application that allows NYC agencies to access DMSS Requirement Contracts (RCs) and the Central Storehouse Catalog online through the City’s intranet. DMSS no longer distributes hard copies of RCs, monthly reports, and the Storehouse Catalog. The electronic distribution not only prevents paper waste but also greatly enhances the information previously distributed by mail. DMSS updates data weekly, and the extensive search tools make it easy for users to find what they need. In addition, the entire contract document and monthly RC reports that DMSS previously mailed to each Agency can now be downloaded from the site in PDF format. Users can also access and download the Central Storehouse Catalog of available commodities. Double-sided copying in reproduction shop The reproduction shop at the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) makes double-sided copies unless a special request for a single-sided job is made. The DEP reproduction shop estimates that it produces approximately 12 million images per year, with 92 percent of the copy jobs being double-sided. The shop uses approximately 6,480,000 sheets of paper (or 1,296 cartons) annually, resulting in 5,520,000 sheets of paper being saved by duplex copying. This amounts to a savings of about $26,000 per year in paper purchasing costs. See the duplex copying measurement tool to calculate the cost savings of making double-sided copies. Refurbishing printer toner cartridges As part of the NYCitySen$e Project, the Department of Environmental Protection’s (DEP) LeFrak City offices initiated a program to collect and return toner printer cartridges to the manufacturers for refurbishing or recycling. In addition, DEP plans to purchase refurbished toner cartridges through its purchasing agents. See toner cartridges for more waste reduction tips. To calculate the cost savings of using refurbished toner cartridges, go to the toner cartridge measurement tool. Electronic telephone directory Participation in the NYCitySen$e Project encouraged the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to initiate additional waste prevention measures. The Agency implemented a program to update, produce, and disseminate its internal telephone directory electronically. Prior to this, DEP printed 2,500 telephone directories annually. Switching to electronic phone directories reduced annual paper usage by 1.29 tons and saved about $14,800:
See the telephone directory measurement tool to calculate the cost savings for your Agency of switching to electronic telephone directories. Streamlining letterhead format to reduce paper waste With 14 Deputy Commissioners and 12 regional headquarters, the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) letterhead needs are constantly changing. To reduce waste and eliminate the need to replace pre-printed letterhead with each new staff appointment, DEP developed a standardized format for letterhead that includes DEP’s logo and the Commissioner’s name. Providing individual computer templates for each office allows DEP staff to personalize and print letterhead on demand. By providing the template, each office can print stationery on demand and reduce paper use. Prior to initiating this program, DEP printed about 2,000 to 3,000 sheets of letterhead per Deputy Commissioner. Expanding the office furniture refurbishing program As part of the NYCitySen$e Project, the Department of Health (DOHMH) reviewed its office furniture refurbishment program. Since 1997, the DOH Distribution Center has collected, refurbished, and redistributed damaged and unwanted office furniture within the Department. Refurbished items include bookcases, chairs, computer cabinets, conference room tables, desks, lamps, and filing cabinets. DOH recovers about 500 pieces of furniture per year, saving approximately $95,000 in new furniture costs. See furniture in tips for your Agency for more waste reduction ideas. Previously, staff at the Department of Health’s (DOHMH) Distribution Center used paper cups for beverages. During the course of the NYCitySen$e Project, Distribution Center staff determined that using reusable cups would reinforce their commitment to establishing a less wasteful operation. If each of the 14 employees at the Center used two disposable cups per day, they would discard approximately 7,000 cups per year. At a weight of 0.3 oz per cup, the waste reduction associated with eliminating these cups equals approximately 131 pounds per year. To measure the waste reduction and cost savings associating with using reusable cups and bowls in an employee cafeteria, see the cups and bowls measurement tool. Incorporating waste prevention into design of printed materials The NYC Department of Sanitation’s Bureau of Waste Prevention, Reuse and Recycling (BWPRR) incorporates the following waste reduction measures when designing printed educational materials:
Recycling oil and fuel filters The NYC Department of Sanitation’s (DSNY) Bureau of Motor Equipment (BME) contracts for the removal and recycling of oil and fuel filters from 75 DSNY repair facilities. The vendor collects uncrushed filters in 55-gallon drums and is required to recycle the oil, metals, and paper from the filters. Through this program, DSNY recycles about 50 tons of filters per year. See automotive products and motor oil in tips for your Agency to find waste prevention and recycling information. Quantifying reductions for the extended preventive maintenance schedule Through its participation in the NYCitySen$e Project, the NYC Department of Sanitation’s Bureau of Motor Equipment (BME) initiated an oil sampling program to determine whether the preventive maintenance (PM) cycle could be extended beyond the traditional 45 days. Based on the test results, BME extended the PM cycle from 45 days to 50 days. A few years later, after testing continued to yield positive results, BME extended the PM interval to 60 days. The extension of the PM cycle reduced the number of times BME changed the oil and filters in each vehicle from six times per year to four times per year. As the tables below indicate, the extended PM schedule reduces waste generation by more than 211 tons per year and saves over $200,000 per year.
The NYC Department of Sanitation’s (DSNY) Bureau of Motor Equipment (BME) contracts for tire-recapping services annually through a competitive bid. The bid specifications require the vendor to pick up, deliver, and provide recapping or section repair for tires from the BME heavy-duty fleet, including front-end loaders, garbage collection trucks, and landfill equipment. DSNY delivers tires that need repair to its Central Repair Service, where staff assigns them for in-house minor repair or vendor repair. After the tires are repaired, DSNY staff inspects them and places the satisfactorily repaired tires back into inventory. As part of the NYCitySen$e Project, DSNY documented the waste prevention results of its tire management program. By recapping tires, DSNY diverts about 417 tons annually from its waste stream and saves close to $1 million per year. Redirecting unused materials to reuse Through an improved housekeeping initiative, the Sign Shop within the NYC Department of Transportation (DOT) identified eight types of supplies in their inventory that were no longer needed. Through participation in the NYCitySen$e Project, the Sign Shop located an internal source within DOT, the Facilities Maintenance Unit, that could make use of the materials. Through this process, DOT reused approximately .75 ton of materials that would otherwise have been discarded as trash and saved over $1,000 in new product costs. Tracking impacts of implementing a citywide computer system The NYC Financial Information Services Agency (FISA) produces numerous reports for distribution to Agencies throughout New York City. During the NYCitySen$e Project, FISA was in the process of developing the Financial Management System (FMS), a system of software and hardware, with cable links to each City Agency. The system allows employees at all Mayoral Agencies to print parts of reports from their desktop computers. The system became fully operational by the end of 1999. Before the FMS system, FISA had to print and distribute hard copies of entire reports in response to each request for information. As a result of the implementation of the FMS system, FISA has reduced its paper use by nearly 265 tons per year. Working with the NYCitySen$e Project, Emergency Medical Services staff at the NYC Fire Department (FDNY) developed waste prevention fact sheets for distribution to the FDNY 34th Street and 58th Street vehicle maintenance and repair operations. FDNY supervisors from both facilities participated in a training session that summarized the NYCitySen$e Project and presented the fact sheets developed for the training. The fact sheets focused on different topics such as Oil Filter Recycling, Mixed Paper Recycling, Cardboard Recycling, Battery Recycling, and Metals Recycling. Each fact sheet contains a description of the program and points of contact for all FDNY locations. As part of the NYCitySen$e Project, the NYC Fire Department (FDNY) established an oil filter recycling program at its 58th Street maintenance and repair facility. FDNY estimates that they recycle one drum of filters from this facility each month, for an annual waste diversion of 3,600 pounds or 1.8 tons. FDNY began recycling oil filters at six other locations, diverting an additional 10 tons of waste annually from the waste stream. See automotive products in tips for your Agency for waste prevention and recycling information. Testing the use of two-way envelopes During its participation in the NYCitySen$e Project, the NYC Human Resources Administration (HRA) switched from standard envelopes to two-in-one envelopes for Social Security mailings. Instead of using a separate reply envelope to return information, the recipient simply turns the flap and reuses the specially designed mailing envelope. Using the new envelopes allows HRA to reduce waste and save about $200 per year. Reusing distribution containers The NYC Off-Track Betting (OTB) Support Center in Long Island City delivers printed materials each night to each of its approximately 70 branch offices. OTB previously shipped deliveries in standard 44-T corrugated cardboard boxes. Due to the weight of the materials, each box could be reused no more than two to three times before breaking. OTB determined that reusable plastic totes could result in cost savings and other benefits. OTB tested different totes before developing the appropriate product specifications that called for strength, light weight, and the ability to “nest” one tote inside the others to maximize the number of empty totes that can be transported in one trip. Each tote has handles, so drivers can easily carry full totes to delivery sites. Before switching to reusable totes, the OTB Support Center replaced approximately 4,000 corrugated cardboard boxes per year, at a cost of about $0.60 per box ($2,400 per year). To make the switch, OTB purchased 200 reusable totes, with a five-year life span, costing approximately $16 each. Spreading the initial cost of the totes ($3,200) over the five-year lifespan results in a cost of $640 per year, or savings of approximately $1,760 per year for OTB. See paperboard and cardboard in tips for your Agency for waste prevention tips and vendors. Establishing a wood-pallet recycling program After participating in a NYCitySen$e Project workshop, the NYC Off-Track Betting (OTB) Support Center contacted a recycling vendor to collect reusable wood pallets which were previously discarded as trash, on an “on-call” basis. Through this program, OTB recycles about 900 pallets per year, eliminating more than 17 tons of waste. Pallet recycling programs vary in their billing/payment practices. Some pallet recyclers pay for good pallets and charge customers to remove broken ones. OTB identified a pallet recycler that pays for good pallets. Implementing a comprehensive recycling program The enforcement and licensing facility of the NYC Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC) established a recycling program that included materials other than those required to be recycled, such as wood pallets. TLC purchased recycling containers and appropriate plastic bags and conducted staff training sessions to promote its recycling program. See recycling for information on NYC recycling requirements.
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Waste Prevention and Recycling Case Studies
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