"Innovations" Case Studies: Organics Options

Local Government Challenges, Opportunities and Tips

Challenges and Opportunities

Communities have many options to reuse, recycle, and compost organic materials. Communities that have implemented some of these programs may find that adding other organics materials could be a key to increasing waste diversion from their community.

In many communities, organics recycling programs are surpassing the tonnages recycled by curbside recycling programs to become the largest waste diversion program in the community.

Some of the greatest savings come from reducing the production of yard trimmings, or using them on-site in a closed loop system. Other significant diversion will increasingly result from composting residential and commercial discarded foods.

Adding discarded foods and food-contaminated paper to residential yard trimmings collection programs may be one of the fastest growing trends during the next several years.

Unlike residential curbside and yard trimmings collection programs, waste prevention and commercial programs require different approaches. Communities do not have to arrange the services. Instead, they need to help develop the public and private infrastructure and promote those initiatives with potential users.

Some tools that communities can use to help develop the food recovery infrastructure include:

• Linking commercial discarded food generators with haulers and end users.
• Providing grants or contracts to service providers to purchase equipment and develop new services.
• Providing technical assistance to discarded food generators to help them design and implement programs.

Tips for Replication

• Identify organics programs that have not been implemented in your community.
• Identify the largest remaining organics recyclables remaining in your waste stream and where they are generated (residential and/or commercial).
• Identify compost processing facilities and service providers in your area.
• Help expand existing organics services in the area, either through direct funding or working together with county and regional programs.
• Match businesses that generate materials with service providers.

Innovations Home | Next Section

Last updated: October 26, 2007