The city of Austin has launched an effort to try to dramatically reduce garbage and increase reuse and recycling within a generation

According to the Austin American-Statesman, city leaders hired a California firm to write a zero-waste plan.

They want to find a way to reuse, recycle and compose all the trash.

The immediate goal is to reduce the garbage sent to landfills by 20 percent per capita by 2012.

But that's just the first step towards achieving zero-waste.

The goal to reach zero waste is an international standard set by the U.N. Environmental Accord.

The deadline is 2040.

Several cities, such as Seattle and San Francisco either already have or are writing zero-waste plans.