Back in 1983 I got what I thought would be my last job ever working for someone else. I was writing, editing, and proofing material for the Texas A&M University Press, the Texas A&M College of Science, the Texas A&M Department of Chemistry, and the Texas A&M NMR Newsletter. I liked the job so much that, after four years, I thought I'd actually close all my other companies and just work for Texas A&M University.

Just as I was making that decision, the Organic Chemistry Professor who basically sponsored all my work announced that he was taking early retirement at the age of 55 and moving to "the Holy Land." Knowing that he was Jewish, I thought he was moving to Israel. Nope. He was moving to Palo Alto, California, his version of "the Holy Land."

I had the privilege of going with him to Palo Alto for three months to help him get things set up out there, and that was the first city that ever exposed me to mass recycling for its citizens. The City provided special garbage bins for plastics, bottles, regular waste, and "green" waste. That was back in 1987.

Fast forward to 2003, and we finally got recycling in my neighborhood. Now I hear that the City of San Francisco has passed the nation's toughest recycling laws, so tough that throwing such things as orange peels, coffee grounds, and pizza boxes in the trash is against the law. Do you think they will have a new government job: "Trash Inspector"?

The part I don't understand about their new law is that they are trying to cut greenhouse-gas emissions with the intent of sending nothing to landfills or incinerators by 2020. 100% recycling. I think that's going to be a tough one. A Waste Management spokesperson here staid that achieving zero waste by 2020 is a "stretch" but worth working toward. Okay. I can agree with that.

So here's another part I don't understand: All food waste and yard waste is required to be composted. Apparently food and yard waste take up costly landfill space and decompose to form methane, "a greenhouse gas 20 times more potent than carbon dioxide." I'm confused. I can understand wanting to put an end to landfills, but is methane from individual composting in our homes less potent than the same methane from a landfill? Why don't they just say that they want to quit using landfills, so citizens will be required to compost their own food and yard waste?

I can't wait to see what apartment and condominium complexes do with this law. If you've ever smelled methane gas, you know that it's not necessarily a pleasant smell. I can imagine the MLS listing on one of those condos: "Beautiful view, so ignore the smell."

*****

1. How the system works and working the system, or Active Rain point values that I know about
2. How to get 500 points with your ActiveRain success story
3. Do you have some commercials for your business?
4. Free help for Active Rain newbies
5. 10 ways to get a featured post at ActiveRain
6. How to keep people from reading your Active Rain blog
7. How do you get people to comment on your blog?
8. Using Active Rain more effectively by finding Power Partners
9. Quit putting huge, gigantic, monster pictures in your blog. Now! (Help on resizing them)
10. Using YouTube videos without slowing down page loading
11. Don't forget to remember how Active Rain supports you indirectly
12. How to use the Active Rain system more efficiently
13. How do you choose a subject for your blog posts?

Need help with marketing? Join the Guerrilla Marketing Tactics

Inspired by nature? Join the Inspired By Nature

Classical music lover? Join the Classical Music Group.

Want to share a good book? Join the Active Rain Book Club