Beginning this weekend, San Francisco will be accepting residents' used
holiday cooking oil at a four-day drop-off event, part of the city's ongoing
program to turn waste into biofuel.
Residents will be able to bring the used oil to three Whole Foods
Market locations in San Francisco -- California and Franklin streets, Rhode
Island Street in Potrero Hill, and Fourth Street in the South of Market
district -- as well as the Costco warehouse at 10th and Bryant streets. The
program is open during business hours today through Tuesday.
The SFGreasecycle program, run by the San Francisco Public
Utilities Commission, is an attempt by the city to reduce the amount of oil
and grease delivered to the sewer system. The collected grease is then turned
into biodiesel for use in city vehicles.
The program has already signed up about 20 percent of the city's
restaurants with a free used oil pickup program, and is hoping to involve
residents with regular drop-off events, according to the public utilities
commission.
Public utilities commission officials estimate used cooking oil
dumped in sewers costs the city about $3.5 million each year to clean up.
For more information, visit their Web site.
