First-year students at the Graduate School of Journalism spent the fall semester reporting on how cities and school districts in the East Bay deal with garbage, recycling and dumps. They whiffed the odors, breathed the dust and looked into recycling bins to see how homeowners, business and school districts treat their trash.Here is a look at what they found.“Garbageland” – Purgatory for Alameda County Trash
By Daniel Freed
San Leandro is the first stop for garbage in western Alameda County, and where recycling begins.
Emeryville Gets More People and Generates Less Garbage
By Kelly Hill
The little city on the fast track to commercial development cuts the amount of garbage hauled and keeps rates low for residents.
El Cerrito Residents Like Recycling but Lag Behind State Average
By Zachary Johnson
Every day El Cerrito residents and businesses discard what they no longer need or want, then it’s out of their hands.Where Cars Go to Die -- and Live Again
By Daniel Moulthrop
A thousand cars a day head for the shredder to become of America's most recycled products.Fourth 'R' in Emeryville -- Recycling
By Melissa Nix
Pupils are enthusiastic in their effort to generate less garbage.Medical Waste Field Dominated by Stericycle
By Adam Raney
Stericycle, incorporated in 1989, is the largest medical waste management company in the United States.Berkeley School Recycling Practice at Odds with Policy
By Roshonda Sturdivant
The district says it should compost food waste, but only two of 17 schools follow policy.One Man's Lonely and Expensive Battle against Litter
By Sarita Tukaram
David McMahon spends his much of his life clearing trash left behind on his front lawn by students of Albany High School.Mountain of Debris Sorted at Berkeley Transfer Station
By Chris Young
The detritus of Berkeley – sofas, computers, and discards of our lives – is sorted and often given new life.Hauling Air from Oakland Schools is Expensive
By Sarah Wiener-Boone and Adam Raney
District startled to find increased recycling fails to save as much money as hoped.You Can Find Almost Anything at Berkeley Recycling Center
By Chris Young
Paintings and literature mix with hypodermic needles and dangerous items.
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At Oakland High, Recycling is a Classroom Crusade
By Sarah Wiener-Boone
For students in Kevin Jordan's environmental sciences academy, it's all about garbage, even during homecoming.When Trash Becomes Merchandise or Art
By Zachary Johnson
Creative Reuse in Berkeley offers once-discarded merchandise at whatever price the clerk gives it if a customer brings it up to the counter.Richmond Dump Haven for Wildlife
By Daniel Moulthrop
Foxes, geese and cranes thrive amid the trash and "daily cover" at huge landfill.Oakland Airport Generates a City's Worth of Garbage
By Daniel Freed
The manager of land operations at Oakland International Airport is trying to make the gigantic recycling system more efficient.Waste Management Big Player in Trash and Politics
By Kelly Hill
Americans throw out more trash each year - and there's money to be made in hauling it away.
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UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism
