Ready to reduce your waste with the WasteBusters Challenge?

Registration is now closed for the 2023 WasteBusters Challenge!

The 21-day WasteBusters Challenge is a pledge-based event hosted by Clark County Green Neighbors. The challenge runs March 1 – 21 and is open to people who live or work in the county. The WasteBusters Challenge aims to educate residents through fun, interactive and engaging activities about the importance of reducing waste at home. By actively participating in the challenge, you’ll build on your existing sustainability habits. Clark County Green Neighbors provides tips and tools to rethink our culture of consumption, and we challenge you to make a difference and improve the environmental health in our community!

How it Works  The Pledges  Kickoff Event

How it Works

Pledge to reduce waste in one of three categories: food waste, household hazardous waste and single-use plastics waste. Accrue points by completing missions using photo/video, text and/or GPS submissions and have the chance to win a prize. Participants will be able to share their waste-busting experiences while strengthening waste reduction habits that will last long after the challenge is over!

What’s new

We’re trying out a new interactive experience by hosting the WasteBusters Challenge on the Goosechase app  (Apple, Android), an online platform inspired by scavenger hunts. After you register online, an email will be sent with instructions to find our experience in the app. The app is accessible on smartphones and tablets and does not require a special login. On March 1, the challenge will go live for you to complete missions and earn points.

The Pledges

Food Waste

I pledge to reduce food waste by eating all apples, bananas, and leafy greens that I buy during the challenge.

Apples, bananas, and leafy greens are commonly purchased and yet are among the top wasted foods. To make sure every item on your grocery list is eaten during the challenge, plan your meals before shopping, and make sure to properly store your produce at home.

Helpful resources

Household Hazardous Waste

I pledge to thoroughly read the label on each household cleaning product I use during the challenge to reinforce my understanding of health and safety risks and proper usage.

Household cleaning product labels have instructions that specify the appropriate quantity to use for cleaning. By reading the label, you may find that you can reduce the amount of product you use and still clean effectively. You may also learn a thing or two about the potential health and safety risks of using cleaning products.

Helpful resources

Single-Use Plastics Waste

I pledge to reduce single-use plastic waste by not using cling wrap and sandwich bags during the challenge and replacing them with reusable options.

Single-use plastics like cling wrap and sandwich bags support a throwaway culture and are a significant source of waste that ends up in the landfill. Use durable options such as bees wax wrap and reusable food storage bags, containers and stretchy lids to reduce single-use plastics.

Helpful resources

Earning Points

Points will be awarded in the quantity of 50, 100, or 200 depending on the level of difficulty and amount of time necessary for the mission to be completed. Participants may choose to only complete missions specific to their pledge with an equal opportunity to win the grand prize.

Prizes

• 1 Grand Prize ($200 value)
  Random drawing of participants who scored at least 1,250 points at challenge end
• 3 prizes ($75 value)
  1st, 2nd, and 3rd place prizes based on overall points on the leaderboard
• 3 prizes ($50 value)
  Random drawings from participants who scored at least 1,000 points by the end of the challenge (one drawing for each pledge group)
• 6 prizes ($25 value)
  Random drawings twice a week with no point minimum

Kickoff Event

We celebrated the annual WasteBusters Challenge with a kickoff over Zoom on Sunday, Feb. 26. Kylie DaCunha with Columbia Springs shared about their nature programs as well as Repair Clark County, a network of volunteers helping to repair home items to extend the life and put off being thrown away in the garbage.

Why is this challenge important?

Food waste, household hazardous waste, and single-use plastics waste all have adverse effects on the environment:

• Food may end up in a landfill, which breaks down and releases methane gas, a harmful greenhouse gas, into the atmosphere.
• Household hazardous waste that is improperly disposed of can make its way into soils, water bodies, and the air, harming people, animals and the environment.
• Single-use plastics require fossil fuels for production and most of it inevitably ends up in a landfill.

Learn more about the negative effects of these types of waste and what you can do to combat it on our resource pages.

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