Hawaii County will receive $1.5 million in a grant from the Environmental Protection Agency to develop a reusable foodware and refillable water bottle system in Hilo.
The system, as explained by Craig Kawaguchi, acting recycling coordinator for the county Department of Environmental Management, would supply reusable foodware and water bottles to restaurants for a low per-use fee, in the same manner that restaurants currently purchase disposable foodware.
Restaurant customers would then receive food and drinks in the reusable items and then drop them off in “conveniently placed” reuse bins when they are done. A reuse service provider would then collect, clean, inspect and redistribute those items to participating businesses.
The project would be a partnership between DEM, Zero Waste Big Island and Perpetual Use, a Washington, D.C., nonprofit that has partnered to bring similar systems to other cities including Ann Arbor, Mich., Galveston, Texas, and Savannah, Ga.
Kawaguchi wrote in an email that switching 50% of Hilo’s disposable foodware to reusable foodware would result in a reduction of more than 3,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions and more than 500 tons of waste annually.
He added that disposable foodware is consistently some of the most common items found in litter clean-ups, so reducing the amount of disposable foodware being used will reduce litter and environmental pollution.
According to EPA grant information, the $1,522,130 in grant funding awarded to the county will allow for the purchase of collection bins, transport vehicles, a dishwashing machine, code scanners, a system to track and manage the infrastructure and more — all of which will result in “1 million uses of reusable foodware in place of disposable foodware.”
Kawaguchi called the project a “city-scale demonstration project” that could serve as an example to other municipalities. The system could be completed and usable by July 2024, although he added that date is tentative.
“We’re deeply grateful for the EPA’s decision to support our proposal to establish a groundbreaking citywide reusable food ware and refillable bottle system in Hilo,” said Mayor Mitch Roth in a statement. “This initiative is all about building the necessary infrastructure for our residents to continue forging a greener and more resilient Hawaii Island, where every citizen actively contributes to the preservation of our environment and sustainability of our island home.”
Email Michael Brestovansky at mbrestovansky@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
