Partnership Offers "Waste Zero" Standard for Contra Costa Cities

(Mt. Diablo-Recology Release) –- The days of traditional garbage and recycling collection may be coming to an end for residential and commercial customers in Central Contra Costa County.  

A newly-formed partnership – Mt. Diablo-Recology – submitted a landmark bid last week to service the cities within the Central Contra Costa Solid Waste Authority. 

If Mt. Diablo-Recology is successful, Contra Costa will be saying hello to a new, local environmental company whose prime objective is to achieve “Waste Zero.” 

“Mt. Diablo-Recology is committed to finding the highest and best use for everything we touch, at a cost-efficient price for residents,” said Joe Garaventa, President and Chief Executive Officer of Garaventa Enterprises. 

Garaventa is partnering with Recology, a San Francisco-based, employee-owned company known for creating some of the most innovative resource recovery programs in the nation. Garaventa’s company owns Mt. Diablo Recycling in Pittsburg – the largest state-of-the-art diversion and recycling facility in Northern California. 

The facility’s technologically superior sorting systems recover a higher volume of recyclables from comingled waste, leading to substantially increased rates of diversion. 

The Garaventa family also owns and operates one of the region’s largest and most comprehensive transfer facilities. 

“Residents, business owners and Central Contra Costa cities deserve more than just business as usual,” said Michael Sangiacomo, President and Chief Executive Officer of Recology, a partner in the new Mt. Diablo-Recology company. 

“We are a local diversion company hyper-focused on what can be saved – not on what is being thrown away,” Sangiacomo added. 

Mt. Diablo-Recology is making a promise that no other traditional garbage company has made in Contra Costa County:  If awarded this contract, the company will guarantee diversion of 75% of the Authority’s waste before the year 2020, with the aim of achieving WASTE ZERO by 2025. 

“Mt. Diablo-Recology will be the best resource recovery company in the Bay Area because we started here, we grew here, we live here and we care about what happens here,” Garaventa said. 

Garaventa Enterprises and Recology are an ideal partnership:  As California’s leading “diversion” companies, Garaventa and Recology share a passion for providing excellent service and innovative environmental programs to the communities they serve. 

Both companies are locally-owned and well-regarded within the Bay Area, headed by families with roots in the solid waste and recycling industry dating back to the 1920s. 

“Corporate hauling companies recycle as a second thought because they make more money taking garbage to the landfills they own,” Sangiacomo said.  “Every ton of waste that goes into the landfill, including alternative daily cover, is a missed opportunity to create new green-economy jobs, recover raw materials, produce cleaner air and water, and ensure a better future for the next generation.” 

In addition to pursuing a WASTE ZERO strategy to divert and recycle solid waste, Mt. Diablo-Recology will lead the industry by using Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) collection vehicles, which  reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 22% compared to traditional diesel trucks. 

Because the company is local, all materials will be delivered directly to the Mt. Diablo-Recycling Center, which would qualify as a Net-Zero greenhouse gas facility as defined by the California Air Resources Board. 

All organics will be composted, which reduces methane gas emissions from landfills and provides an environmentally conscious fertilizer solution to the community. 

“We are committed to a lot more than the traditional collection model and hope to set a new standard for diversion in Contra Costa County,” Sangiacomo said.  “After all, it is our vision to see a world without waste.”  

“Mt. Diablo-Recology will pursue a WASTE ZERO goal in the cities we service, and we are committed to staying on the leading edge of sustainability and providing innovative environmental services at a competitive price,” Garaventa added. 

Bids for a new 10-year contract with the Central Contra Costa Solid Waste Authority closed last week. 

The contract will be awarded by spring 2014, for a March 2015 effective date.  The Central Contra Costa Solid Waste Authority serves the cities of Danville, Lafayette, Moraga, Orinda, Walnut Creek and a portion of the unincorporated areas of Contra Costa County.