Interior Alaska Green StarAnnual Report

2008

PO Box 82391Fairbanks, Alaska 99708

(907) 452-4152www.iagreenstar.org

Executive DirectorDarcie Warden

Darcie@iagreenstar.org

Mission StatementInterior Alaska Green Star is the Fairbanks chapter of Green Star®, a non-profit

organization which encourages households and businesses to practice wastereduction, energy conservation and pollution prevention.

Message from the Executive Director

It is amazing how quickly one year goes by. It was just March of

2008 when I began working as Executive Director with Interior Alaska

Green Star (IAGS),and I hit the ground running because the first e-

waste recycling event was only weeks away. Luckily for me, the past

director, Eva Rothman, kept excellent records and had successfully

planned and executed two electronics recycling events; with her help I

was able to smoothly transition into my new role. But don’t worry, we

haven’t lost Eva - she now serves on the IAGS board providing

guidance and support. Eva sits with a great group of people on the IAGS

board. These are volunteers who are fiscally responsible for the

organization and who take that responsibility very seriously. Each

board member brings their own unique skills and experience to the table. I would like to acknowledge the

hard work, expertise, community contacts, passion, and commitment that they bring to this organization.

Further, our mission is supported by all the hard work from our volunteers and by the generous contributions

from our donors. All of this support provides IAGS the necessary resources to host bi-annual electronics

recycling events over the past three years. Just in 2008, over 25 tons of electronics were diverted from the

FSNB landfill. Businesses, non-profit organizations, and individual households invested in the electronic

recycling program by participating in our collection events. The mind-boggling aspect about this work is that

we will only be recycling more and more electronics as time goes by. Our modes of communication become

more sophisticated so quickly, that the electronic devices we have in our possession become obsolete within

a year or two. This is an alarming trend that is not slowing down - so IAGS not only recommends that

consumers recycle their electronics, but that they also purchase electronic items from companies that take

responsibility for their products (from production to end of life). Purchase products from companies that use

fewer toxic materials and who utilize construction methods that make it easier to break the products down at

the end of life stage.

IAGS is well known in the community for the electronics recycling program - but we will soon be providing

even more services in the coming year. The board and I have been developing a 3-year work plan and have

spent many hours strategizing how to achieve our goals over the next few years. We are excited to re-

institute the Green Star Award Program in 2009, provide education and outreach to schools and community

groups, and support all efforts working towards sustainable living practices. I look forward to the upcoming

year and all that we can accomplish together in the Interior of Alaska.

April 2008 - Items Collected

203

26

128

2836

5967

111 4

33

60

44

3

74

1 0

25

2 2

89

4 3

38

100

0

50

100

150

200

250

Compu

ter C

PU

CPU & mon

itor s

et

CRT mon

itor

LCD m

onito

r

Lapto

p com

puter

Keybo

ard

Printer

< 20lb

Printer

< 30lb

Printer

> 30

lb

Deskto

p cop

ier

Fax m

achin

e/sca

nner

Cell ph

one/c

harge

r

Answeri

ng m

achin

e/pho

ne

Electric

type

writer

DVD/VCR/stere

o play

er

Microw

ave

Coffee

maker

TV/19-27

"

TV/28-36

"

Calcula

tor

CDs/DVDs/f

loppie

s

UPS batte

ry pa

cks

Camera

/camco

rder

Modem

s/ext

drive

Other

Num

bers

of I

tem

s Co

llect

edAccomplishments

Electronics Recycling: IAGS held two electronics recycling events in 2008.

April 2008 ElectronicsRecycling Event

In the spirit of Earth Day, IAGS held an electronics collection event on April 26th in the parking lot of the

Carlson Center, and also hosted an information booth at Glowing Planet Concept Tree’s Earth Expo 2008

that was held inside the Carlson Center.

IAGS collected electronics all day on the 26th from businesses and households and also collected items

during the evening of the 29th while the Golden Valley Electric Association’s Annual Meeting was hosted at

the Carlson Center. By the end of the two-day collection event, the electronics recycling team had collected

and shipped 11.9 tons of obsolete electronics from the Fairbanks community to Total Reclaim Inc. in

Anchorage and then on to their Seattle recycling facility. Thanks to these efforts, we successfully diverted

an estimated 1094 pounds of lead from the FNSB landfill.

October 2008 Electronics Recycling EventThe second electronics recycling event of 2008 was held

on October 4th and 6th in the Westmark Hotel’s back

parking lot. We thank Westmark’s generosity for

providing our volunteers an indoor work space; because

of course it is cold enough to snow in October! IAGS -

with the help of dedicated volunteers including a 5th

grade class from the Tri-Valley School District -

collected approximately 13 tons of electronic waste.

Over 200 households, businesses, non-profit

organizations, and government agencies participated in

our Fall electronics recycling collection event; some came from as far away as Denali. Again, we collected

computer monitors, printers, and televisions - plus numerous cell phones, VCRs and miles of cables and

wires associated with electronic devices. These obsolete electronic devices were shipped to the recycling

center, Total Reclaim Inc., in Anchorage where 90% of the items will be recycled or reused.

Oct 08 Electronics Recycling

70

44

99

11

29

60 58

25

81

27

49

4 6

72

9

0

41

3 2

21

7

85

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

CPU

CPU/Mon

itor/p

eriph

erals

CRT Mon

itor

flat s

creen

mon

itor

laptop

keyb

oard

printe

r less

than

20

printe

r 21-3

0

printe

r more

than

30

copie

r des

ktop

fax m

achin

e/sca

nner/

all-in

-one

cell p

hone

anweri

ng m

achin

e

electr

ic typ

e write

r

DVD play

er/vc

r/ster

eo

microw

ave

coffe

emak

er

tv 19

-27"

tv 28

-36"

calcu

lators

cd,dv

d,flop

pies

UPS batte

ry pa

cks

other

Type of items collected

Num

ber o

f ite

ms

colle

cted

Electronics Recycling PartnersIAGS has selected Total Reclaim Inc. as the electronics recycling company based on their high recovery

rate of e-waste materials and their responsible handling of toxic materials. They have taken the “Pledge of

True Stewardship with the Basal Action Network (BAN)”, which holds strict standards and practices for

recycling and exportation of materials. This is important because used electronics contain lead, cadmium,

barium, chromium, and mercury – materials which are toxic to the environment, as well as to the people

who work in the e-waste dismantling industry. Strict standards identified by BAN prevent these materials

from being burned or water soaked, in order to prevent toxic persistent organic pollution (POPs) from

entering our water systems or air.

The Fairbanks North Star Borough Solid Waste Division has been a constant partner in our recycling

events over the last 3 years. We have depended on their contributions of their skilled forklift operators to

load material on to semi-trucks. The continued commitment from the FNSB Solid Waste Division ensures

the safety and on-going success for IAGS’s electronics recycling collection events.

Two partners who helped with the critically important pieces of publicity and volunteer recruitment were

the Northern Alaska Environmental Center and the Associated Students of University Alaska Fairbanks

Recycling Club. Both of these partners share IAGS’s goal to inform the public and student populations

about recycling opportunity in Fairbanks.

The Carlson Center and Westmark Hotel provided the venues for the two events in 2008. It is important to

provide safe, easy access to businesses and households for electronics recycling drop-off. Thanks to these

two partners we had a great location for 44’ long trailers, safe access for on-going traffic throughout the

day, and plenty of space for volunteers to work.

The October event was the springboard to prepare the community for the

television digital changeover, so we wanted to advertise the event on TV.

However, advertising is the biggest expense item in the budget, especially

through television media. But thanks to Tanana Valley Television’s

generous donation of commercial production and airtime, IAGS was able

to advertise the October e-waste collection a week before the event on

three stations. Based on our survey, many people were informed about

the event through these television broadcasts.

Total Electronic Waste Collected in 2008

Major e-waste contributors at the collection events have been the Tri-Valley School District in Healy, BLM

Fire Service, Princess Hotel, Denali National Park, the City of Fairbanks, Alaska Communications Systems

(ACS), Alaska Department of Fish and Game, and HSS Warehouse. These businesses, along with the

many individuals in the community, contributed to successful events which have diverted over 50 tons of

electronic waste from the FNSB landfill over the past three years.

2008 Electronics Recycling Totals

273

70

227

3965

119 125

369 5

60

109

48

9

146

10 0

66

5 2

110

11

226

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

CPU

CPU/Mon

itor/p

eriphe

rals

CRT Mon

itor

flat s

creen

mon

itorlap

top

keyb

oard

prin ter le

ss tha

n 20

printer 2

1-30

printer m

ore than

30

copie

r deskt

op

fax m

achin

e/sca

nner/

all-in-

one

cell p

hone

anweri

ng machi

ne

electr

ic typ

e write

r

DVD play

er/vcr

/stere

o

microw

ave

coffe

emaker

tv 19-2

7"

tv 28

-36"

calcu

la tors

cd,dvd,

flopp

ies

UPS battery

packs oth

er

Product Collected

Num

ber o

f Ite

ms

Col

lect

ed

Public Outreach and Education

IAGS enters the class room:

Interior Alaska Green Star provides educational presentations about electronics recycling to school classes,

organizations, and community groups upon request. In 2008,

IAGS presented to 15 high school classes, junior high classes

and organizational groups. Thank you to West Valley High

School, Ryan Middle School, and UAF for inviting us into

your rooms to share information about the local e-waste

collection efforts and why it is so important to dispose of old

electronic items responsibly.

Special Events

IAGS joined the Midnight Sun Festival downtown with an

informational table. We provided handouts about local

recycling efforts, electronics recycling, plastics and IAGS

membership information. This was a great opportunity to reach out to the community about our services and

recruit volunteers.

Our major partnership over the summer was with the Tanana Valley State Fair. During the nine days of the

fair, IAGS had an informational booth in the Borealis Pavilion and also organized the recycling efforts for

plastic and aluminum. Thanks to the leadership of the Tanana Valley State Fair, Wal-Mart, K&K recycling,

and all the volunteers who put time in with IAGS, we accomplished our goals of information distribution,

volunteer recruitment and recycling of plastic and aluminum for the duration of the fair.

IAGS also had a great time at the Golden Days Parade held in downtown Fairbanks. Eva Rothman, creative

board member - along with her amazing children - constructed a T-Rex out of plastic bags to illustrate the

number of plastic grocery bags a family uses in one year. This visual aid caught the attention of adults and

children alike, giving us the opportunity to promote local recycling efforts in the community and distribute

Fred Meyer reusable shopping bags to those who wanted them. Thank you Fred Meyer for your donation to

our outreach efforts!

Green Events

Tanana Valley State Fair (TVSF) partnered with IAGS, Wal-Mart, K&K Recycling, and ALPAR to gather

plastic and aluminum beverage containers for recycling. Even though

the weather was cold and wet almost every day of the fair, we gathered

approximately 210 pounds of aluminum representing ~ 6703 cans, and

200 pounds of plastic representing ~ 4081 bottles. The collection and

separation of plastic and aluminum was as successful as it was thanks

to the 50 volunteers who put in an amazing 460 hours of volunteer

time. Over the nine day period, nearly 75,000 people attended the fair,

which is a drop in the usual attendance due to the inclement weather.

With that fact in mind, IAGS and the TVSF expect to see more people

and more recycling in the summer of 2009!

Community Involvement

IAGS was involved with the FNSB Recycling Task Force meetings over the past year. The three IAGS board

members - Pam Seiser, Andrea Miller and Kristen Thomas - attended 12 months of meetings. Their

contributions lead to strengthening the final recommendations that were eventually delivered to the Borough

Mayor.

Interior Alaska Green Star Infrastructure ImprovementsIAGS held three strategic planning sessions to plan for the future, strengthen organizational systems,

continue outreach, and further develop the Green Star Awards program. We have already accomplished our

goal to increase organizational capacity by electronically linking board members on a shared website with

document sharing, instant messaging capability, and on-line storage for pictures and documents. IAGS is

also using a new on-line data base to track volunteer hours, members, and donor contributions. This very

important tool will further strengthen our abilities to reach out to the community.

Board of Directors

Pam Seiser, Board Chair Bill SmythAlaska Biological Research, Inc. Department of Environmental Conservation

Carol Ann Varner Eva RothmanArmy Corps of Engineers Fairbanks Resource Agency

Kristen Thomas Andrea MillerCold Climate Housing Research Center Fairbanks Memorial Hospital

Staff

Ty Keltner Darcie WardenCold Climate Housing Research Center Executive Director

2008 Volunteers

Thank you to all of the dedicated volunteers:

Gina Baker Paul Foucheaux Michele ScoutenSharon Baker Zack Gaskins Pam SeiserMelissa Baltazar Matt Goodwin Barbara SevierRoberto Baltazar Martin Harrington Marielle SmithAlex Batista Dorothy Heim Bill SmythRuby Baxter Justin Heinz David SpindlerCaleb Beaty Bob and Joann Henszey Sara SpindlerAlexander Bergman Arline Hogenson Kayli StanfillBillie, Sharon, and Susie Ethan Howe Al StoruickSteven Bonfoey Nancy Hummel Ashleigh StrangeMichael Bradshaw Ambrose Mazion Joel's PlaceJohn Bunten Steve McElreath Karen and KristiLeticia Carroll Andrea Miller Billie KasselAlysha Childs Pat Moodie Ty KeltnerAly Cruey Alice Mural KelvinMatt Delcastillo Kerry Nelson Steve KendellTom DeLong Mary Ann Nickles Suni LambertLa’ona DeWilde Debbie Nigro Will LentzTom Dillon Crystal Nolin Jessica LundyMary Dokken Misty Nolin Julie MaierChristian Dornkven Ashley Norum Bob SugdenKathy Duryee Sally O’Connell Renee SugdenArt Eveland Jordon O’Dell Kristen ThomasSuzy Fenner Ricky Pelton Tri-Valley School 5th GradeEric Ferree Tadge Piure UrsulaDeb Fitzgerald Eva Rothman Carol Ann VarnerDevon Fitzpatrick Aurora Rotz Stuart VarnerDavya Flaharty Marilyn Russell Catherine WhitneyTyson Flaharty Tyler Saunders Briana WilburnAna Fochesatto Tamara Scott

2008 Sponsors

Gold StarGolden Valley Electric Association

Wal-MartUsibelli

Tanana Valley TelevisionBest Buy

Rasmuson FoundationTotal Reclaim Inc.

Silver StarABR

ALPARAlyeska

Fairbanks Memorial HospitalFlint Hills

FNSB Solid Waste DivisionWestmark

Totem Ocean Trailer Express, Inc.

SupportersFred Meyer

Safeway

Interior Alaska Green Star2008 Financial Statements

Balance Sheet

Statement of Activities

2007 2008

Cash, Savings, and investments 8,140.00 8,944.00

Land and buildings 0 0

Total assets 8,140.00 8,944.00

Total Liabilities 33.00 114.00

Net assets or fund balances 8,107.00 8,830.00

Revenues

Contributions, gifts, and similar amounts received 23,685.00

Program service revenue 19,067.00

Membership dues and assessments 0

Investment income 34.00

Total Revenue 42,786.00

Expenses

Salaries, other compensation and employee benefits 13,306.00

Professional fees and other payments to independentcontractors

2,465.00

Occupancy, rent, utilities, and maintenance 0

Printing, publications, postage and shipping 437.00

Conferences/meetings 38.00

Web hosting/Internet fees 532.00

Promotion and public awareness 3,941.00

Recycling expenses 20,619.00

Bank service charge 75.00

Dues and subscriptions 275.00

Insurance 204.00

Supplies 171.00

Total Expenses 42,063.00

Assets

Excess or (deficit) for the year 723.00

Net assets or fund balances at beginning of year 8,107.00

Net assets or fund balances at end of year 8,830.00