A company representative described landfill-free as a method in which one bag of trash going to the landfill as more than what that GM facility puts into a landfill.

“It’s exciting,” Iris Rodgers, General Motors United Auto Workers representative said. “It’s (been) a grass-roots effort.”

Mike Robinson, GM vice president of sustainability and global regulatory affairs, said during the media event the company has reduced its greenhouse emissions by 35 percent and has reused or recycled 2.6 million metric tons of waste, which he said was equal to three years worth of the Lansing population putting two bags of waste on the curb every week.

“This is a huge milestone and a very symbolic one for us at the company in our ongoing effort to reduce waste,” Robinson said during the event.

GM Communications Manager Sharon Basel said the company has been able to become landfill-free by practices such as recycling materials into usable car parts.

“When you consider the monumental effort … that’s pretty amazing,” Basel said.

She said the company actually has profited from being landfill-free, with the reuse of materials reducing the company’s expenditures by $2.5 billion.

Robinson said GM has committed to further reduce their energy intensity by 20 percent and convert at least 25 more facilities to landfill-free by the year 2020.

“GM understands the value of energy efficiency and is motivating its many factories and plants to improve energy efficiency by 10 percent or more in the next five years or fewer through the EPA Energy Star challenge for industry,” Michael Compher, Chief, Indoor and Voluntary Programs Section, Air and Radiation Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said.

“These are really, really thoughtful people making a contribution to the quality of life here in Lansing,” Robinson said of the GM officials and 261 facility employees that made this happen.
“The best ideas are coming from the plant folks.”