Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates recycles coat hangers and coffee filters at his home. When you reach my age, you think about how you want to spend your time, he says. You only have so much left on the planet. I want to do what I can for climate change and global warming. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
For Mayor Tom Bates of Berkeley, recycling is not merely a cause, it’s a religion.
Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates carries a bucket of recycled water to nurture his plants outside his home. Bates has been eco-minded as long as his two grown sons can remember. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates air dries his clothes. Recycling, Bates says, is his religion. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates walks home from a meeting. Bates sold his Volvo and has gone green. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
