The 3 Bin System - Sailors for the Sea

The 3 Bin System

 July 23, 2013  | By: Oceana

At the 34th America’s Cup, no matter where you are, from the Marina Green to Race Management offices,  you will always find the three bin set up for waste disposal. The three bins are for the separation of waste into compostable, recyclable, and land fill. The signs for distinctive green, blue and black bins proudly sports the Sailors for the Sea Clean Regattas logo. 

First, I talked with some of the great sustainability volunteers that are out helping the public deposit items into the correct bin. Shane Kennedy, a volunteer, told me that most people were surprised that the plastic cups were actually compostable, and that people appreciated the extra effort being made to reduce waste. He noted that since everything being sold at the venues has been selected to be compostable or recyclable very little is going into the black landfill bin!

With the great work of the sustainability volunteers, life is a little easier for the Green Team. After collection, the Green Team double checks the compostable and recyclable items to ensure they have been sorted properly.  Talking with two members of the Green Team, they said that most of what comes across their sorting table is properly sorted by the public.

In the offices, at the docks, the media zone, and everywhere I have been, the blue, green and black bins are easily spotted. In some cases they are giant dumpsters with the appropriate color. One of the largest dumpsters I have seen is set aside for recycling of plastic film which doesn’t normally get recycled but is being specially collected and recycled because of the large amount being used as pallet wraps.

The Puma store is also doing their part to recycle plastic film by collecting their poly bags at the door of the store. Workers in the store are asking at the cash register if they can collect and recycle the bags items are packaged in, and they estimate that 90% of the bags are being collected. 

From the volunteers to the retailers and the sorters everyone here is conscientious about where their waste should go. It made me happy today to see a volunteer chase down some escaped napkins that were blowing around preventing them from ending up in the bay!