Aiming at Zero: Planning for Zero Waste in the Pioneer Valley
Activist Lynne Pledger who is the force in Massachusetts behind the legislation to expand the kinds of materials that must be recycled (think beyond bottles & cans & paper…think carpets and televisions) is coming to Northampton to discuss Zero Waste Policy & Action.
You are invited to attend: “Aiming at Zero: Planning for Zero Waste in the Pioneer Valley”
What: Slide presentation by Zero Waste advocate Lynne Pledger, followed by a question and answer session. Learn about this potentially transformative international movement — what it is, where it’s happening, and how your town can be a part of it.
When: Thursday, June 30, 7:00 PM
Where: John F. Kennedy Middle School, 100 Bridge Road, Florence, MA
Why: Our accelerated production and waste cycle is a root cause of our planet’s most confounding problems, including climate chaos and dwindling natural resources. Now, with area landfills closing and a state ban on building new incinerators, communities in the Pioneer Valley are looking for ways to reduce the amount of waste to be managed, save money and protect our environment. Where there’s a will, there’s a way!
Who: Lynne Pledger is the Solid Waste Director for Clean Water Action, Massachusetts and Coordinator of the Massachusetts Product Stewardship Council. She serves on the MassDEP* Solid Waste Advisory Board; and a founding Steering Committee member of Don’t Waste Massachusetts, an alliance of thirty-five Massachusetts groups concerned with health, the environment, and the public interest; and a member of the national Sierra Club Zero Waste Team. In the last two years she has been a speaker for the Massachusetts Climate Action Network, the national Grassroots Recycling Network, Mass Recycle, Toxics Action Center, the Concord-Carlisle League of Women Voters, Cape and Islands Renewable Energy and a guest lecturer at Lesley University.
Sponsors: Amherst Energy Task Force, Amherst League of Women Voters, City of Northampton Department of Public Health, City of Northampton Department of Public Works, Clean Water Action, Coop Power, GREEN Northampton, Greening Greenfield Energy Committee, Hampshire Council of Governments, Northampton League of Women Voters, Pedal People, Pioneer Valley Sustainability Network, Sierra Club of Massachusetts, Town of Amherst Department of Public Works, Town of Amherst Energy Task Force, Toxics Action Network, Transition Northampton* The state’s Department of Environmental Protection Draft 2010-2020 Solid Waste Master Plan, “A Pathway to Zero Waste”, calls for keeping in place the state’s current moratorium on new municipal waste combustion facilities, expanding public and private sector recycling and re-use of waste materials, ensuring greater producer responsibility for materials management, and increasing promotion of recycling businesses and green jobs.