Each year California disposes of 30 million tons of waste into landfills and nearly 30% of this waste is compostable organic material. This consists of mostly of landscaping and green waste as well as food waste. Assembly Bill 32 aims to assist in helping California achieve a 75% reduction in waste going to landfills by 2020... and organic materials have been targeted as the next step towards accomplishing this goal.

For a quick background, carbon-based organic materials naturally decay faster than other waste in normal, oxygen rich (aerobic) conditions- producing CO2 and compost-like byproducts. However, in a landfill where these materials are covered by other wastes, these organic materials are trapped in anaerobic conditions (little oxygen). A result is that instead of producing CO2 as a greenhouse gas byproduct, these decaying materials also create methane (CH4), which is a greenhouse gas 32 times more potent than CO2, trapping more heat per gram.

The State of California will therefore work with cities to implement new policies and infrastructure to reduce methane production from landfills as one of the avenues for GHG reduction. This will include new technologies such as anaerobic digesters, waste to energy facilities, increased composting partnerships and the necessary infrastructure to support such programs. We will be keeping close tabs on this development, but Property Managers should be aware that new requirements to begin diverting organic waste from your recyclables and waste could be in the works. DC Environmental will continue to expand it's offering as more partners, haulers and processors come online. Contact us today to learn if this is available in your area!

For more information, see http://www.calrecycle.ca.gov/climate/