Good morning, readers.
According to a 2023 NC Newsline report, there are 25 million tons of garbage in a landfill in Sampson County, hauled in from 44 counties around the state including Durham and Wake. In Durham, local entrepreneurs are working to ensure that less waste is shipped to that landfill.
For our Earth Day paper this week, Justin Laidlaw spoke to the founders of the Recollective, a door-to-door service that collects materials that cities won’t recycle (think pill bottles, batteries and bulbs, materials used for shipping packages) and Don’t Waste Durham, a program that partners with local businesses and government departments to encourage use of reusable goods such as utensils and serverware, bags, and other items.
The ReCollective has nearly 400 members around the Triangle, while Don’t Waste Durham is unlocking new potential for a “circular economy” in the Bull City.
“A huge lesson I learned is that policy and innovation must go together,” says Crystal Dreisbach, the founder of Don’t Waste Durham. “A policy cannot be changed unless people have their minds open to a different way, and then that innovation cannot be scaled until the policy passes, so they really need each other.”
Dreisbach has seen policy successes and setbacks. Don’t Waste Durham partnered with the county’s health department to advocate for the use of reusable serverware, and together they convinced the NC Department of Health and Human Services to allow for reusable serverware in the state’s food code.
But the group had less success with instituting a plastic bag fee. Before it could get Durham leaders to vote on the proposal one way or the other, the General Assembly prohibited municipalities from restricting plastic bag use in its budget proposal.
Still, Don’t Waste Durham partnered with two retailers to pilot a reusable bag program, and the City of Durham is making its own strides to bring reuse into its operations. Bryce Brooks, the cofounder of the ReCollective says the private and public sectors can work together to reduce waste at the source.
“If we designed waste out of the problem … recycling wouldn’t have to be the Hail Mary that people think of it as,” she says.
Read the whole story here. And have a good Thursday.
—Jane
Durham
At a community meeting this week, residents weighed in on a proposal for redevelopment of Durham’s Lakewood shopping center.
Op-Ed: Durham city council member Nate Baker makes the case that it’s time for Duke to make direct payments to the city and county in lieu of paying taxes on the property it owns.
ICYMI: Duke made a climate commitment two years ago. But some worry that without clear goals or authority, it could end up a well-intentioned failure.
Wake
Wake County-based hemp grower/distributor Hemp Generation provides a safe space for the cannabis-curious.
The Raleigh Professional Firefighters Association is pushing for city leaders to include a retirement benefit in the budget that the group hopes will improve retention.
Orange
A UNC System Board of Governors committee voted to approve repeal of diversity, equity, and inclusion policies at system universities across the state.
North Carolina
A lobbyist was seriously injured at legislative leader Destin Hall’s wedding weekend in December.
Today’s weather
Sunny with a high of 87 degrees.
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