Published January 3rd, 2024
As we bid farewell to 2023, Scraps is reflecting on a year marked by major achievements and significant growth in our commitment to zero-waste services. From educating the local community on waste diversion practices, to providing services for some of the Denver Metro region’s most prominent events, we’re proud and motivated to continue to work as a leader in this important & growing space.
Zero Waste Milestone
One of the proudest achievements of 2023: we implemented zero-waste services at more than 85 events! This milestone showcases our dedication to sustainability in events, while also highlighting the increasing awareness and demand for eco-friendly event practices in the community.
Community Engagement and Education
Our zero-waste crew has grown to include 100+ passionate individuals, all of whom played a pivotal role in engaging and educating the local community this past event year. Tasked primarily with monitoring zero-waste stations and interfacing directly with the public, their efforts help model & teach the best event waste diversion practices for our region. By actively involving the community, our teams don’t simply manage waste responsibly, but also foster a sense of environmental responsibility amongst event-goers.
Environmental Impact
The numbers speak volumes about our impact in 2023. Through our efforts, we estimate diverting more than 2,183,579 pounds (990 tons) of compost from the landfill, preventing the release of 938,939 pounds of greenhouse gas into the atmosphere. That is similar to the amount of carbon that is sequestered by 500 acres of forest in one year! These figures underline our commitment to helping everyday people, local businesses, and event organizers mitigate their environmental impact and contribute to a more sustainable future. We’re excited to pilot new ways to track even more of our impact in the coming year. In 2024, we are honing our event program waste diversion metrics and instituting new processes to better track and measure each event’s compost rates.
Signature Events
We can hardly believe it’s been a year since the 2023 event season kicked off with one of the most humbling zero-waste event service contracts in our seven-year history: Governor Polis’ Inauguration last January. This event set the tone for the year, and helped showcase our team’s work, passion & expertise to a diverse & influential audience.
Nine months later, near the end of the season, our team reached another milestone by providing zero-waste services for the Molson-Coors 150th Anniversary celebration: a full-day, three-part, widespread event that spanned the City of Golden and welcomed more than 10,000 attendees. This massive event challenged us to scale our operations more than ever before, and solidified our reputation as the go-to provider for sustainable events of any size and scope.
Looking Ahead to 2024
We’re buzzing with excitement as we gear up for the next chapter: 2024 zero-waste events, and beyond. We’re thrilled to already be booking events into the summer, working with multiple private event companies as well as municipalities, and fortifying our operations to take on more events than ever before.
In Denver, Scraps is proud to have served on the city’s Waste No More Task Force, helping shape the groundbreaking Waste No More initiative, which will require all permitted events and venues (not to mention all commercial businesses and multifamily buildings) in the City & County of Denver to provide compost and recycling services, starting in 2024. We’re excited to see how this ordinance is already affecting the surrounding region, and we’ve heard from countless members of the community at our events in and around Denver how grateful they are to see an ordinance of this nature coming to pass.
For any questions regarding the implementation of this ordinance and its wider impacts, our team is here to help. And we have a new expert in our midst: our new event specialist & your point of contact for zero-waste events at Scraps, Randi Zimmermann. Randi will help you navigate how Scraps can best serve your zero-waste event needs in 2024 and beyond. Her passion for sustainability and experience in the events industry will help you navigate all the ways that all types of events can level up their sustainability game – from responsible sourcing of approved compostable products, to responsible disposal, and beyond.
As we reflect on the accomplishments of 2023, Scraps is filled with gratitude for the support of our community, partners & dedicated team members. The year has been a testament to the power of collective efforts in building a sustainable future, and a watershed year for seeing zero-waste practices enter the mainstream in our region’s event scene. As 2024 begins to unfold, we’re eager to continue our journey toward a zero-waste, eco-conscious event landscape in Denver and beyond.
