Iris Waste Diversion Specialists
In 2004, after many years working in the resource recovery program management field, Sarah Archer decided to start her own company, Iris Waste Diversion Specialists. Iris Waste Diversion Specialists are resultants more than consultants. They implement programs, do waste assessments, plan events, and help programs improve their waste diversion or get established. If there is something that you need done, they find a way to do it.
This proves true when you take a look at all the services they offer, and with that how they are able to meet the needs of both private and public sectors. Whether it is a specific need for private businesses that want a certain tour or educational materials, or for municipalities that don’t have the budget for a recycling coordinator and need help in multiple areas. Iris Waste Diversion Specialists know how to make a program successful and how to deliver results for companies.
Looking towards the future, Iris Waste Diversion Specialists are hoping they can expand and offer more for the organic waste services they provide. Currently they do have a Composting Specialist on staff that provides organic education programs, to help set up collection programs for schools, businesses, etc. They try to provide this sort of technical assistance to evaluate an institutions organics, and help them plan on how they can divert this waste from going into a landfill. Next, they are working on expanding their earth worm farm by collecting food scraps from farmers markets in Bay City and Flint, and feeding them to the worms. This is a great way to utilize organic waste and keep it out of landfills.
Part of obtaining organics growth for Iris Waste Diversion Specialists is having more markets that can support it. They are hoping that new legislation will provide funding to the counties and municipalities to improve programs and help them grow. Michiganders need this support from the state to help develop the infrastructure to help fund our counties and cities to grow their programs and education systems.
Until funding progress can be made, Iris Waste Diversion Specialists are doing everything they can to help. For example, they have been facilitating the statewide group, Resource Recovery Educators of Michigan, since 2008. With them, in 2017 they launched the Great Lakes Bay Zero Waste Consortium, which was founded through a partnership with the Conservation Fund, Duro-Last, Vantage Plastics, Saginaw Valley State University, Morley Companies, East Michigan Council of Governments, Michigan State University Center for Regional Economic Innovation, and the Sustainable Research Group. This type of support is how Iris Waste Diversion Specialists are going above and beyond to try and do what they can to advance waste recovery in their community.
Through the work they do and the support they give to the Michigan Recycling Coalition, Iris Waste Diversion Specialists are making it their mission to not only be consultants, but to be resultants for waste diversion in Michigan.