Oakland-founded California Waste Solutions combines community cleanup support with AI scanning and optical sorting as Oakland targets illegal dumping.
OAKLAND, CA, UNITED STATES, September 25, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — California Waste Solutions, Inc. is putting artificial-intelligence scanning and expanded optical sorting to work at its Bay Area facilities as Oakland deploys a new aerial AI program designed to proactively identify abandoned trash on streets and sidewalks.
The City of Oakland launched Aerbits on September 10, using AI-assisted aerial imaging to identify and report abandoned trash without relying solely on resident complaints or 311 reports. Separately, California Waste Solutions, Oakland’s longtime residential recycling provider, is installing EverestLabs AI scanners at its 10th Street material recovery facility in Oakland and increasing Pellenc optical-sorting capacity at the Timothy MRF in San José.
California Waste Solutions announced this month that it is adding AI scanning alongside expanded optical sorting across its Bay Area operations. The company’s technology serves a different purpose from Oakland’s Aerbits program: the City’s system identifies dumped material in public spaces, while California Waste Solutions’ equipment provides better information about recyclable material after it reaches a processing facility. Together, the investments demonstrate how technology can be applied at different points in the broader waste and recycling system.
“We are delighted to support the City of Oakland, where our company was built, as it works to address illegal dumping,” said Michael Duong, President of California Waste Solutions. “Our family company grew up in Oakland and has expanded across the Bay Area and as far away as Vietnam, but everything we have built goes back to my father and grandfather’s early years working from the ground up in recycling. Illegal dumping has long been a challenge for Oakland, and we strongly support the City and community in working toward cleaner neighborhoods.”
Oakland’s Aerbits launch is part of a larger citywide effort that includes increased enforcement, additional cleanup equipment, public education, expanded legal disposal opportunities and a $9.2 million, three-year public-private partnership with the Crankstart Foundation announced in June. The City describes its broader strategy around three areas: eradication, enforcement and education.
California Waste Solutions has also supported cleanup efforts directly on the ground. The company provided two garbage trucks for an Oakland community cleanup that included removal of trash and illegally dumped material from the Home Depot area, Union Point Park and neighborhood streets. Volunteers and community partners participated in the effort, demonstrating how public agencies, local businesses and residents can combine resources to improve neighborhood conditions.
That community involvement complements the company’s day-to-day role in Oakland. California Waste Solutions provides residential recycling collection in the city and participates in Oakland Recycles, a collaboration among the City of Oakland, California Waste Solutions, Waste Management of Alameda County and residents that provides recycling information, service guidance and education.
At the processing level, California Waste Solutions runs recyclable material through its facilities using increasingly sophisticated sorting technology. The new Oakland EverestLabs scanners observe material entering the container line and provide operators with information about what is still headed toward disposal. They can count material, measure belt conditions and show how much belt surface remains exposed, helping operators identify situations where a line may be running too deep or unevenly for optimal recovery.
California Waste Solutions has used optical sorting in its U.S. facilities since the mid-2000s. The company’s current investments combine expanded Pellenc optical sorting in San José with AI-assisted scanning in Oakland to improve material identification, recovery, product purity and visibility into facility operations.
“There is no question that cleaner and better-organized material streams help recycling facilities produce better results,” said David Duong, Founder and CEO of California Waste Solutions. “Our family has seen the recycling industry evolve over more than four decades, from doing the work by hand and recovering material from the street to operating sophisticated facilities today with hundreds of skilled workers. Better collection, better education and better handling of materials ultimately produce better results for the people we serve.”
The new AI scanners at California Waste Solutions give operating teams a more continuous record of conditions on the sorting line. If the same recyclable repeatedly reaches the end of the line instead of being recovered, supervisors can examine upstream equipment settings, loading conditions and contamination and make operating adjustments. The data can also help inform future investment decisions, including whether additional robotics, optical sorting or other equipment may improve recovery.
Material arriving at recycling facilities also continues to change as packaging formats evolve. Contamination affects how material moves across sorting lines, while batteries, plastic bags, food waste and other trash require different handling and should not simply be mixed into a recycling cart.
California Waste Solutions has operated curbside household battery collection for Oakland since 2015 and plans to introduce curbside household battery collection for single-family customers in San José in early 2027. The planned San José program is designed to keep approved household batteries separate from the regular recycling stream and downstream sorting equipment.
“When people think about recycling, they sometimes picture everything simply being mixed together and sorted later,” said Michael Duong. “That is not how an effective recycling system works. Materials need to be identified, collected and processed correctly. Illegal dumping bypasses those systems entirely. That is why cleanup, education, proper disposal, enforcement and better recycling technology all have important roles to play.”
California Waste Solutions’ investments come as California’s recycling system continues to evolve. Permanent regulations implementing SB 54, California’s packaging producer-responsibility law, took effect in May 2026. California’s Beverage Container Recycling Program has also expanded to include additional beverages and container types, with updated CRV labeling requirements taking effect in July 2026.
The company is offering media access to its 10th Street facility to show a representative load, the EverestLabs scanners in operation, the items crews encounter during a typical week and how material moves through a modern recovery system. California Waste Solutions can also demonstrate its expanded Pellenc optical-sorting operations in San José.
For the company, those plant-floor investments are only one part of the larger picture. Recycling performance begins before material reaches a facility, with residents understanding what belongs in their carts, what requires separate handling and what legal disposal services are available. Oakland’s current illegal-dumping strategy similarly emphasizes public education and access to free and legal disposal options alongside cleanup and enforcement.
California Waste Solutions was founded in Oakland in 1992 and today serves more than 343,000 customers across Oakland and San José while operating six Bay Area facilities. The Oakland-headquartered, family-owned company has grown from its local recycling roots into recycling, resource-recovery and environmental-infrastructure operations in California and Vietnam.
“Oakland is where our family built California Waste Solutions, and it will always be an important part of who we are,” David Duong said. “Technology will continue to change our industry, but the purpose of our work remains the same. We are here to serve people and communities. That means investing in better systems, supporting our employees, listening to residents and working with our partners to build cleaner communities for the next generation.”
About California Waste Solutions
Founded in Oakland in 1992 by David Duong, California Waste Solutions provides recycling collection, processing, customer service and material recovery for residential, commercial and municipal customers in Northern California, including Oakland and San José. Through its subsidiary Vietnam Waste Solutions, the company also operates large-scale environmental infrastructure in Ho Chi Minh City. California Waste Solutions is headquartered at 1211 Embarcadero, Suite 300, Oakland, CA 94606. www.calwaste.com
Wendy Nguyen
California Waste Solutions
+12066045675 ext.
wendynguyen@calwaste.com
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