NEW YORK—New York City-based hoteliers looking to find a home for items ranging from furniture to unopened amenities can use the services of NYC WasteMatch. Created and funded by the NYC Department of Sanitation’s Bureau of Waste Prevention, Reuse & Recycling, WasteMatch facilitates the exchange of used and surplus goods with the approximately 4,000 nonprofits and businesses in NYC. For hotels there are many benefits: reduced waste hauling costs, reduced tax burden, increased green standing in the NYC community, and knowing that their efforts are having a positive impact on the environment.
Adanna Roberts, NYC WasteMatch program manager, says WasteMatch has been up and running since 1998. Only a few hotels have participated in the program so far, resulting in 30 to 40 tons of materials removed from the waste stream. “We are in the process of reaching out to more hotels,” she says.
Roberts says a common barrier to participating in a program like WasteMatch is a lack of interest and time. “If it is too much work for them, they just throw it out,” she says.
Website Makes It Easy to Participate
Hoteliers interested in participating in WasteMatch can either create an account on the WasteMatch website or call the WasteMatch office at (212) 650-5832.
“We can usually find a home for everything if given some time,” Roberts says. “We don’t have a warehouse or a truck. There are many organizations that are always looking for stuff. “We try to be as creative as possible to find a home for an item.”
Nonprofits are screened prior to participation in the program and Roberts says she works with the organization donating items to make sure they are comfortable with where the goods may end up.
As part of the NYC Department of Sanitation’s Bureau of Waste Prevention, Reuse & Recycling, WasteMatch is responsible for diverting 600 to 700 tons of material from the commercial waste stream each year.
Those interested in participating in similar programs who are outside of New York City can check out:
http://www.wastexchange.org/ Click on “Other Exchanges” then “Order by State.”
http://www.redo.org/ Click on “Find a Reuse Center” then “Select the State You Are Interested In.”
http://www.smallbiz-enviroweb.org/Resources/sustainableinfo/recycling.aspx Click on state of interest.
http://www.reusealliance.org/ Click on “About” then “Our Members” for a list of reuse groups.
Glenn Hasek can be reached at editor@greenlodgingnews.com.
