Department of Environmental Services

Today was a busy busy day learning about waste and energy! We visited the RRR Recycling, H Power Waste to energy facility, Waimamalo Gulch landfill, and the Hawaiian Earth Recycling green waste facility on the island of Oahu!
We learned many thing about their “trash” and what they do with it to be sustainable! Such as paper products—they send these to other countries where it is soaked, stirred, made into mush, and then dried to become different forms of paper again!
We discussed the importance of their energy sources and what it will take to be a state that has 100% renewable energy sources—their first steps are to close their coal power plants, which I think is a great start!
Another important thing we discussed was compost and green waste—by making things such as outdoor waste into mulch!
This was a really fun day, being able to experience and see for ourselves how much trash and garbage Honolulu “makes” with the high commercialization and tourism that they have since a lot of their garbage comes from hotels and tourists coming and going.Read more