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Today, the vast majority of businesses and individuals around the country understand the importance of separating their trash into different colored bins for recycling, composting, and regular trash disposal. In fact, almost three quarters of the entire population of the United States, or an estimated 229 million Americans, have access to some form of curbside recycling at home.

What most people don’t know, however, is that the City of San Francisco, California was actually the first city in the country (if not in the world) to institute a curbside recycling program based on different colored bins. Back in 2003, the city of San Francisco upgraded their city composting program by offering all residents and businesses three, distinctly colored individual bins for separating trash, recycling, and compost. This program was part of the City´s stated goal to achieve “Zero Waste” by 2020. 

Though we may have missed the mark on achieving Zero Waste by 2020, the leadership provided by the city´s ambitious plans to drastically reduce the amount of waste that was being sent to area landfills served as a model for other cities and towns around the country to implement their own recycling strategies. 

Today, the city of San Francisco boasts an 80 percent diversion rate, which essentially means that 80 percent of trash that would have otherwise ended up rotting away in a landfill was either composted, recycled, donated, repurposed, or otherwise “upcycled” to keep the raw materials circulating in a circular economic model. 

Despite the fact that the Bay Area continues to guide the country on the necessary transition towards a Zero Waste future, the city of San Francisco still sends 444,000 tons of material to the landfill each year, which is enough to fill the TransAmerica building nine times. This statistic should make it clear that all of us should make an effort to reduce even further our “waste footprint”, which is defined as “the amount of waste produced by sourcing ingredients and materials, manufacturing and processing, and transportation…It also represent the environmental, economic, and social impacts that result from waste that humans create.” 

The Importance of Appliance Recycling in the Push for a Zero Waste Society 

One of the biggest obstacles to reducing our waste footprint even further is the general difficulty that many people face in attempting to get rid of certain junk items. Separating your pizza boxes, leftover kitchen scraps, and empty cans and glass containers into the colored recycling and compost bins is relatively simple and straightforward.

But what exactly are you supposed to do with a 400-pound refrigerator that is taking up extra space in your garage and driving up your energy bill? Used and broken down appliances represent one of the biggest headaches for homeowners, business owners, and others who don’t have the means to haul a heavy and bulky item either out to the curb or to a designated recycling or drop-off center. For this reason, used appliances are widely considered to be one of the most common sources of illegal dumping. 

As with any device that incorporates electronics, used appliances are also considered to be a source of electronic waste (e-waste). Electronic waste is extremely hazardous to humans and the wider environment because some of the components found in appliances and electronics contain metals and chemicals known to harm human health.

Heavy metals, polyaromatic hydrocarbons, toxic fire retardants, dioxins, and other hazardous byproducts are often released into the local environment when used and broken down appliances are not disposed of in a proper manner. Furthermore, refrigerators, heat pumps, furnaces, ACs, and other appliances that use refrigerants may also release an enormous amount of greenhouse gas emissions when sent to a landfill. 

Consider the following statistics: 

• Retail sales of household appliances added up to more than 300 billion U.S. dollars in 2020. Almost 700 million individual appliance units are shipped each year, and the vast majority of those new appliances are replacing outdated and broken down models, which must be disposed of in a responsible manner. 
• A recent UN report found that 41.8 million tons of e-waste – mostly fridges, washing machines and other domestic appliances at the end of their life – was dumped into landfills or other illegal dumping areas. 

This goes to show that we making an effort to properly recycle or donate your used or broken appliances is one of the biggest “waste” challenges we face. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recommends that “appliance owners should avoid illegal dumping and dispose of appliances responsibly.

To the extent possible, schedule the collection of your appliance with your Department of Public Works, a retailer, bounty program, or other recycler. Appliances left curb-side might be picked up by peddlers who may improperly vent refrigerant or otherwise dispose of the appliance in an unsafe manner.” 

Why Junk King of Peninsula is Your Best Option for Fast and Efficient Appliance Recycling

If you don’t have a huge pickup truck or trailer to haul your old refrigerator down to your local thrift store, or if you no longer have the strength, stamina, or desire to carry your refrigerator out to the curb in front of your home, Junk King of Peninsula offers the most efficient and cost-effective appliance recycling service right here in San Carlos and the surrounding area. 

We are proud to offer the top junk removal services to the Peninsula area, including residential and commercial clients living in Atherton, Belmont, Burlingame, La Honda, Loma Mar, Los Altos, Menlo Park, Mountain View, Palo Alto, Pescadero, Portola Valley, Redwood City, San Carlos, San Gregorio, and Stanford

We are also proud to say that we have a proven commitment to reducing the amount of junk that gets landfilled. After years of working in the junk removal businesses, at least 60 percent of the junk items that we pick up are either recycled, donated, or repurposed, and almost 100 percent of the appliances we pick up from our clients stay out of area landfills.

We have developed an extensive relationship with donation centers, non-profits, thrift stores, and recycling operations to ensure that the vast majority of your junk gets stays out of our landfills. All of us have a shared accountability in reducing our waste streams, and choosing Junk King of Peninsula can help you reduce your waste footprint. 

Furthermore, Junk King of Peninsula has years of experience in helping people free up space in their home and business for all different sorts of junk removal need. Our junk removal technicians will do all the heavy lifting and hauling so that you only have to let us know what items you want removed.

If you need more time to go through the stuff that is clogging up your home or business, you can also rent one of our dumpsters that will give you a large, convenient space to store your junk while going through the cleaning and de-cluttering process. 

Lastly, we also believe that the best junk removal companies should offer fair, transparent, and upfront pricing estimates. There is nothing worse than being given a bill that is double what you were originally quoted for your appliance recycling needs. Here at Junk King of Peninsula, we offer four different ways to get a transparent price quote.

We offer free, on-site pricing for all of our customers, and can often haul away your junk during that first price quote. You can also text us an image of the junk you need removed at 1-737-888-5865, and we´ll reply with a quote within minutes. If texting isn’t your thing, simply call us at 1-888-5865(JUNK) or consider booking us online here.