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  1. Home
  2. Managing and Transforming Waste Streams – A Tool for Communities
  3. About the Tool

Terms and Definitions Used in the Tool

Sectors

C&D Projects: Construction and Demolition projects, e.g., buildings, roads, land clearing, disaster recovery

Community: General public, cross-sector

Government: Local public agencies

ICI: Institutional, Commercial and Industrial (institutions refers to universities, faith-based organizations, non-profit agencies, etc.)

Residential: Single-family households or multi-family households/units

Material or Product Groups

C&D: Construction and Demolition materials or debris, e.g., asphalt, concrete, dimensional lumber, fiberboard, plywood, ferrous metals, non-ferrous metals, asphalt shingles, cardboard, carpet

Diapers: Disposable diapers

Electronics: Electronic products nearing the end of their "useful life", e.g., computers, televisions, appliances, batteries, cell phones, etc.

Hard to Handle: Large, bulky reusable and/or recyclable items, e.g., mattresses, couches, carpets, large appliances

Hard to Recycle: Items that are recyclable but not generally accepted by most municipal recycling programs, e.g., electronics, furniture, appliances, certain plastics, bike tires and tubes, propane tanks, fire extinguishers

HHW: Household Hazardous Waste

Industrial Materials: e.g., coal combustion products, foundry sand, iron and steel slag, scrap tires

Motor Oil: A lubricant used in internal combustion engines

Organics: Food waste, yard waste, soiled paper, wood waste

Paper, Plastics, Glass, Metals: Traditional recyclable materials that include many kinds of paper, plastics, glass, and metals

Scrap Metal: Discarded metal suitable for reprocessing

Textiles: A type of cloth or woven fabric

Various: This term is used for measures that can encompass a wide variety of materials, including one or more material or product groups defined above.

Managing and Transforming Waste Streams – A Tool for Communities

  • About the Tool
    • How to Use the Tool
    • Terms & Definitions
    • Filter Descriptions and Qualitative Rankings
    • Featured Cities and Counties
  • The Planning Tool
  • Featured Examples and Resources
    • Browse by Topic
    • Examples and Resources (#1-50)
    • Examples and Resources (#51-100)
  • Contract Language
    • Case Studies
      • Austin, TX
      • Berkeley, CA
      • Boulder, CO
      • Fresno, CA
      • Napa, CA
      • Renton, WA
      • San Diego International Airport
      • San Francisco, CA
      • San Francisco International Airport
      • San Jose, CA
      • Seattle, WA
    • Full Contracts and Agreements
      • Berkeley, CA
      • Renton, WA
    • Contracting Best Practices
      • Align Costs to Rates
      • Commercial Bins
      • Direct Materials to Markets
      • Disposal Payments
      • Education and Outreach
      • Incentives and Penalties
      • Increase Diversion
      • Innovations Clause
      • Market Organic Materials
      • Multi-Family Customers
      • Purchasing Preferences
      • Separate Compensation from Rates
      • Source Separation
    • Procurement Best Practices
      • Collaborative Negotiation vs. New Procurement
      • Local Government Billing or Lockbox
      • Mandatory Recycling and Composting
      • Minimum Zero Waste Standards
      • Process Integrity Guidelines
      • Publicly Owned Facilities
      • Separate Contracts
      • Separate Technical and Price Evaluation
      • Start Early
    • Sample Contract and Franchise Agreement Clauses
Contact Us
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Last updated on March 14, 2025
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