Eleven Bellevue firms on top recycling list

Eleven Bellevue businesses have been named to the second annual King County’s 2008 Best Workplaces for Recycling list.

The 11 are among 50 local companies recognized for strong internal recycling programs and for their commitment to making recycling a priority for their companies.

In Bellevue, CH2M Hill, city of Bellevue, Coca Cola Bottling Company of Washington, Expedia Inc., HDR Engineering, MulvannyG2 Architects, Outsource Marketing, Overlake Hospital Medical Center, Reprographics Northwest, Yoga Centers, and Roth Hill Engineering Partners made the list.

This year’s list of 50 local businesses is more than double the number from 2007. King County releases the “Best Workplaces for Recycling” list annually, and expects it will continue to grow. The goal of the list is to recognize the top recyclers and help motivate others in the local business community to improve recycling practices.

To qualify as a Best Workplace for Recycling, companies must meet at least 10 criteria out of a list of 33 good business recycling practices—choices that range from placing recycling bins by every desk, to collecting food scraps for on or off-site composting.

Each year, businesses in King County send more than 240,000 tons of recyclable materials to the landfill. By providing a recycling-friendly workplace, companies can dramatically increase their recycling rate, ultimately saving money on their garbage bill, county officials say. For example, in some businesses, just providing desk-side recycling containers has increased recycling rates from 25 percent to more than 80 percent.

“It is encouraging to see more restaurants and hotels on the list this year. These businesses prove that you don’t have to be a traditional office to be a business that is good at recycling,” said Sharon Aller, King County program manager for the campaign.

“Incorporating environmentally friendly practices into the workplace means finding opportunities to conserve wherever possible – that means at desks, in kitchens, break rooms, warehouses and anywhere else where employees generate recyclable materials,” Aller said.

The “Best Workplaces for Recycling” list is part of a larger county educational outreach campaign to encourage businesses and residences alike to recycle more. To learn more about what these businesses are doing to improve recycling programs, visit www.metrokc.gov/recyclemore.

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