By Kathianne Boniello
Baysider Jerry Ward makes a living by seeing trash for all it’s worth — literally.
As head of Earth Conserve Inc. on 48th Avenue, Ward has developed a company that uses recycling to help businesses reduce the amount of garbage they pay to have taken to landfills.
“What we’re doing is truly on the cutting edge,” said Ward, who started Earth Conserve about 2 1/2 years ago. “It’s a win-win-win situation: the customer wins because of lower prices, the trash hauler wins because of lower costs, and it’s good for the environment.”
Salvageable materials — ranging from glass and paper to produce and food waste — are diverted to places where they can be reused or recycled, Ward said, with food waste going to farms for composting.
Earth Conserve’s main business, Ward said, is to help company’s develop recycling programs and arranging for recyclable materials to be taken to recycling centers or other drop-off points.
“It helps them reduce the costs associated with waste disposal,” said Ward, who once worked for a trash hauler in Jamaica. “The only way to save is to go reduce what you give to the trash hauler.”
Because trash haulers face escalating costs at metropolitan area landfills which are quickly filling up, Ward said, reducing the amount of trash sent to the landfills makes environmental and economic sense.
At least it did for Richard Cuzzo, owner of the Cake Box, a bakery in the Bay Terrace Shopping Center for which Earth Conserve developed a recycling program.
Ward said the bakery, which makes a point of keeping fresh breads, cakes and Danishes on hand for customers daily, had been throwing away about seven bags of food each day.
Instead Ward arranged for several local food banks to take the bags.
“Now it feeds the homeless,” he said.
Cuzzo said “they got people to come in here and take my breads and the Danishes, they showed me how to recycle my corrugated cardboard. They did an excellent job.”
The vision for Earth Conserve, Ward said, includes not only helping businesses implement effective recycling programs but also transporting garbage to recycling centers and eventually bringing back goods made from recycled materials for use in local companies.
“There’s no such thing as garbage,” Ward said.
For more information call Earth Conserve at 428-4600.
Reach reporter Kathianne Boniello by e-mail at Timesledgr@aol.com or call 229-0300, Ext. 146.
