New York’s goal of sending “zero waste” to landfills by 2030 may be missing the mark on what the term is really supposed to mean. Dr. Maggie Clarke, an environmental scientist who has been involved in local waste policy for more than 30 years, said the term zero waste is all about reusing every resource for as long as possible while expending as little energy as possible. Think of the ubiquitous recycling triangle on a much greater scale.