Eco-Cycle’s Dan Matsch and Bulk is Green Council’s Clint Landis
“Green is Good” welcomes Eco-Cycle’s Dan Matsch and Bulk is Green Council’s Clint Landis to discuss their green initiatives.
Dan Matsch, Compost and CHaRM Manager, Eco-Cycle
As Compost and CHaRM (Center for Hard-to-Recycle Materials) Manager at Boulder, CO-based Eco-Cycle, Dan Matsch has seen nearly all of the city’s no-longer-wanted items come through his facility. From athletic shoes and cooking oil, to bike parts and toilets, CHaRM has offers a recycling solution to community members in this affluent Rocky Mountain town.
The 30-year-old company is one of the largest nonprofit recyclers in the U.S., and is aiming to make Boulder the model zero-waste city for the world. Matsch, whose recycling career stretches back to the ’80s, also spent time as an organic farmer for 14 years in Boulder. His keen understanding of composting procedures means big resource savings for the city, and reduced greenhouse gas emissions as well.
“The beautiful thing about zero waste is it’s not looking only at what happens when we’re discarding stuff and what can we recycle and compost,” Matsch explains. “It’s also looking at what we call the ‘midstream longevity’ of a product’s use and maximizing that product’s longevity through reuse, repair and working with industries to make their designs more durable.”
Clint Landis, Co-Founder and Board Member, Bulk is Green Council
The Bulk is Green Council’s mission is to educate consumers about the environmental benefits of buying foods in bulk. Clint Landis, of Frontier Natural Products Co-Op in Norway, IA, is a co-founder and sits on the council board, and shares his passions of environmentalism and living well.
The savings from buying in bulk are major — around 30% to 60% for the consumer. And that’s just the beginning. Bulk goods require less transportation, reduce food waste and lessen manufacturing demand. All of this adds up to major CO2 reductions across the board — a big savings for Mother Nature!
“Bulk foods, in this day and age, are more relevant than they ever have been,” Landis reveals. “There are a number of things people don’t understand about buying in bulk, and it’s because they haven’t done it yet. Everything from saving packaging to saving money — with the economy the way it is, who doesn’t need to save money? Bulk is a phenomenal way to save.”
