Simon Property Group has joined forces with the City and Waste Management of Orange County to launch a recycling awards program at The Shops at Mission Viejo. The move is part of an effort to encourage shop tenants to recycle.
The Quarter Awards Program provides cash rewards for the best recycler, or “Super Recycler.” Beginning in October, one business each quarter will be selected to receive $125 worth of Simon Gift Cards for staffers that are in charge of taking out their recyclables and trash.
The Super Recycler will be selected based on weekly site visits conducted by the City’s recycling consultant, EcoNomics, Inc., to all trash enclosures. Along with the gift cards, the Super Recycler will be photographed and featured on the City’s Mission Viejo Life Blog. The blog, which the City launched in June 2008, is Mission Viejo’s official source for accurate news and information and receives thousands of hits per month.
To encourage tenants to participate, mall tenants received information about the program, including backdoor recycle reminder signs for employees, a list of recyclable materials and fun facts about The Shops at Mission Viejo’s Recycling program, which was launched in July.
The Shops at Mission, which is managed by Simon Property Group, is making an effort to become “greener” in its malls. Last year, Simon Property Group completed the largest solar installation by a mall owner in the country with a solar facility on the roof that is used to power the mall’s communal lighting. Simon’s Laguna Hills Mall recently implemented a mall-wide food scrap diversion program.
The mall recycling push is a win-win for the mall and complements the City’s environmental efforts.
The City has long been committed to protecting the environment by implementing and expanding recycling and waste diversion programs in an effort to preserve and protect the environment and exceed the state’s mandated 50 percent diversion rate. The City diverted 64 percent of its waste in 2008, up from 42 percent in 2003.
