Case Study: San Francisco International Airport (SFO)
Overview:
Location: San Francisco, CA
Facility Size: 14.6 million sq ft
Typology: Government (Aviation & Transportation)
Owner: San Francisco International Airport (SFO)
Project Prime: Stok
Waste Consultant: All About Waste
Key Facts and Figures:
22 million pounds of solid waste generated in 2022
28% reduction in waste generated from 2018 to 2022
More than 95% of generated waste was recyclable or compostable*
*Key fact from the 2018 Zero Waste Plan and the 2018 study that was conducted
Sustainability Goals:
Zero Waste Airport - Reaching a 90% diversion rate by 2030
What We Delivered:
Waste Characterization Study of Airport Material Recovery Areas (MRAs)
Visual Waste Inspections of SFO Campus Buildings
Liquid Collection Unit (LCU) Waste Characterization Study
A Zero Waste Audit Report with detailed metrics, charts, and photos for all waste streams
Analysis of materials generated, operational procedures observed, and more
Actionable recommendations for SFO to reduce waste, increase diversion, and improve upon current operations
Research on technologies and innovation
Zero waste behavior pattern analysis
Waste collection bin design support
Support with Zero Waste Plan updates to the original 2018 Plan
Summary:
All About Waste, in partnership with Stok, worked with SFO on a variety of zero waste projects, including the 2024 Zero Waste Plan (an update to SFO’s 2018 Zero Waste Plan, which is pending release), MRA Waste Characterizations, SFO Campus Visual Waste Inspections, and a Waste Characterization of SFO’s Liquid Collection Units. The project began with data collection, planning, and research for the update of SFO’s zero waste plan, to determine current benchmarks that would best inform the vision, goals, and strategies for the updated plan. Part of the data collection process included the planning and execution of the various waste characterizations of specific areas of the overall airport, which provided valuable insights into materials that are being generated, contamination levels of each waste stream, current operational practices, and more. All of this helped inform recommendations for SFO’s pathway to zero waste that were included in the waste audit reports, and expanded upon in the 2024 Zero Waste Plan. All About Waste continues to partner with Stok and SFO on upcoming zero waste projects at the airport that focus on helping the airport achieve its 2030 goal of a 90% diversion rate through the implementation of reuse, recycling, and composting initiatives. This airport’s current progress and zero waste leadership is a testament to the effort that the local teams have put in to reach this goal, which helped not only to reduce carbon emissions generated from the airport, but also helped promote local jobs, training and education for SFO staff, as well as engage travelers, airlines, and onsite vendors on zero waste. To learn more about SFO’s zero waste efforts, check out the zero waste page on their website!