GM adopts 'zero waste' program

FLINT, Mich., Jan. 4 (UPI) -- General Motors said it will turn half of its 181 worldwide facilities into "zero waste" operations in two years.

GM officials, discussing their massive recycling plan at their Flint, Mich., headquarters, told The Christian Science Monitor that the company announced its ninth and 10th landfill-free plants last month. Several more will be added to the list soon, they said.

GM joins a small but growing number of organizations to adopt a zero-waste agenda. Wal-Mart and even 70 percent of New Zealand's municipalities are working to eliminate all trash. Unlike response to environmental efforts, big business is reported leading the way.

That's because adopting the zero-waste model offers many businesses quick returns on their investments -- unlike switching to some other Earth-friendly initiatives, such as solar power.

The drive to recycle came from workers, with no prompting from headquarters. First, a way was found to return the scrap to the supplier for reuse and this year the Flint plant will recycle enough polystyrene to make 42 million coffee cups, the Monitor said.

And, GM is looking into ways to use the hard-to-recycle paint sludge in a waste-to-energy program that would burn it to make electricity.