About 10 DtaSers hauled themselves to the SF Dump for a tour of the facilities. SF has a huge disposal facility with many separates parts: There’s hazardous disposal (paint, batteries, oil, e-waste, etc.), public dump (for all your personal dumping needs at $123.07/ton), the recycling center (bottles and cans just claps your hand, just clap your hands), and of course the good ol’ household garbage transfer station.

The sheer volume of garbage was staggering…about 14-18 tons per day goes straight to the landfill. Looking out at the field of garbage, it felt like a sea of plastic. In addition, you could see thousands of recyclable items mixed in with the garbage. It’s easy to understand why recycling rates for plastic have stayed flat over the past ten years when you look out on this heap.

The tour was heavily attended by artists seeking the exclusive Artist in Residency. We got to meet the two current artists, Casey Logan and Barbara Holmes. Casey makes science meets absurdity meets trash sculptures (he found a place in my heart), while Barbara has a furniture maker background. She keeps a blog on her experiences at the dump, check it out at http://www.re-f-use.blogspot.com.

I’ll be heading back for a tour of the Recycling Sorting Center on the 28th (4th Monday of every month @ 930 AM). I’ll have more to say after that experience. In the meantime, check out pics from the event: