Last month, the Frito-Lay Factory in Brisbane saw a lot of attention from local news outlets and members of the San Mateo County community. The source of this hubbub was Jake Scussel. If you hadn’t heard of him before now, you’re not alone. He started popping up on a lot of radars after discovering a treasure-trove of trash behind the Frito-Lay factory. After repeated attempts to get Frito-Lay to address the issue, Scussel took matters into his own hands, filling numbers of garbage bags with trash before reporting the pollution to city officials. He publicized some of his finds on social media, including the below bag from 1992 (images courtesy of Jake Scussel):
Mr. Scussel’s proactive approach and enthusiasm did, in the end, get the attention of the facilities management, and the company made a good-faith effort to turn the situation around by enlisting staff to support the cleanup.
Inspired by the actions of everyday citizens going above or beyond in the name of water-pollution prevention, we reached out to Jake for an interview. What follows are excerpts from this conversation:
FTB: Hey Jake, thanks for taking some time to talk with us. Why was it important for you to take action and clean up the trash behind Brisbane’s Frito-Lay factory?
JS: I would clean up the bags that blew over the fence on a regular basis, hoping that Frito-Lay would fix whatever the issue was. But it never got better. The litter was almost exclusively plastic and was finding its way into a rain channel that flows into the Bay. I’ve heard the stats about how there will likely be more plastic by weight than fish in the oceans soon, and I’ve seen the photos of various beaches and marine-animal guts overflowing with plastic. I wanted to do anything I could to stop the Frito-Lay’s garbage from achieving that same fate.
In December of 2018, a friend shared an article on Facebook titled How to Fight the Global Plastics Problem. It was a big inspiration for me (despite the fact that is was published in TeenVogue and I’m nearly 32). A link inside the article to Greenpeace’s Million Acts of Blue Toolkit provided the mental slap my brain needed to realize there were much more effective things I could be doing beyond just picking up the garbage. For example, tagging the brand responsible in photos on social media, reporting them to the city/municipality where they reside, and alerting local media.
FTB: Where does your passion for environmental issues come from?
JS: There are so many stories coming out about how much plastic is getting into the ocean, and climate change, and mass extinctions. I try to do what I can to help as an individual by recycling, giving up meat, buying in bulk and so on, and when I saw this huge company next door seemingly not caring it was really frustrating. I had to do something!
FTB: What else do you do? Do you have any hobbies? Are you active in any groups? Do you do “eco-friendly” things at home?
JS: As far as eco-friendly stuff, I tend to a garden at my office! It’s not drought tolerant, but it’s full of fruits and vegetables that I planted using seeds from kitchen scraps…I currently have avocado, snap peas, tomatoes, peppers, and garlic growing. I also water the garden with rainwater that I collect in 5-gallon jugs from my office’s downspout during storms.
I think one of the most impactful things I do is to not buy anything brand new. That means clothes, electronics, home goods, etc. I always check Poshmark, Craigslist and eBay before Amazon (which incidentally also has a “Buy Used” option). I’d guess that this alone makes a bigger impact than all the other stuff I do to lessen my carbon footprint.
FTB: Do you have any advice for people who might not have a lot of time, but want to contribute to the social and environmental health of their communities?
JS: You don’t have to save the world, just enrich your life! Whether that’s trying yoga, reading a book, or finishing a project—you pretty much can’t go wrong.
From all of us at Flows To Bay, THANK YOU Jake! You never know how big of an impact your small actions can make, and you’ve clearly helped make a positive change at the Frito-Lay factory.
Jake also wanted to mention that if anyone wishes to recycle their own chip bags, you can do this at many Subaru dealerships through their partnership with TerraCycle. Have questions or comments about this blog? Feel free to email us at info@flowstobay.org
