Green Initiative

Curbside's commitment to recycling goes back to our founding.  The first household hazardous waste we collected was used oil (hazardous in California).  That first gallon of used oil we collected was used to make ship fuel reducing that ship's need to acquire virgin fuel, perhaps from another nation.

From the start, we decided that offering public agency clients the opportunity to recycle or destroy/bury was not going to be in the best long term interest of Curbside, the communities or their residents.  Years ago when we first started, recycling was almost always more costly than destroying or burying waste.  A good example is our decision in 1995 to recycle every household battery collected.  The difference in price between recycling and landfilling is staggering.  We did not offer our clients a choice, all batteries have been recycled since.

Any liquid we collect that has a BTU value (it will burn) can be converted to industrial fuel.  Every gallon of industrial fuel made from waste we collect is another gallon of virgin fuel we need not purchase from abroad.  Solid items with fuel value can be used in a similar manner after they are re-liquefied.

Fluorescent lamps, compact fluorescent lamps, ballasts, mercury devices, electronics and electrical items can be recycled into new metals which are used to produce new products often at a lower cost than mining new ore.  The recycling effort usually takes less energy and provides more jobs than virgin ore extraction.

Latex paint is a very large waste stream in household hazardous waste programs and for painting contractors.  Every year, thousands of gallons are recycled at our Denver facility.  The product we make is used to produce a non-toxic moisture barrier used in the construction industry.  The traditional product is made from petroleum.  The moisture barrier product protects basements from moisture for longer and at a lower cost to the environment than petroleum based products.

Many more products are recycled.  Our mission is to continue to explore relationships with firms who can recycle the 10% of waste that is currently not recycled.  Curbside can not be directly compared to other firms who collect hazardous waste.  There are other methods of disposal which are less expensive and include landfilling.  We will continue on the path of choosing recycling first regardless of what our competitors do.

In addition to our commitment to recycling and reducing our impact on the environment, our vehicles are well maintained to reduce emissions and oil leaks.  We use smaller vehicles that have a lower impact on streets.  We use recycled steel drums when they are appropriate.  Recycled boxes are used to ship latex paint and non-hazardous materials, when the boxes are no longer usable, they are recycled into new material.