Since the mid-1990’s collaboration between the local government, industry,
and academia was established to offer zero cost energy and waste assessments to
businesses and organizations that operate in Lucas County, Ohio, USA. The research
project, named the Business Waste Reduction Assistance Program (BWRAP) has
performed over 85 solid waste assessments and identified over 125,000 short tons of
waste for reduction. In addition to the waste reduction, the BWRAP program has also
identified over $3.5 million in cost savings through the implementation of the
recommendations. This chapter provides an overview of the BWRAP program
including its framework and a comparison to similar collaborations in the US. A case
study is also provided.
Keywords: Academia, Economic analysis, Energy reduction, Government,
Greenhouse gas reduction, Partnerships, Pollution prevention, Recycling, Solid
waste assessments, Waste reduction.
