Climate, Methane, and Composting
It’s important that we take steps today to decrease heat trapping gas emissions so that we protect future generations from the harm of climate change. Did you know that if we decrease kitchen and food waste in landfills we can decrease methane, a powerful heat-trapping gas, in the atmosphere?
Methane acts like a heat-trapping blanket, making up about 20% of greenhouse gases. When we send kitchen and food waste to the landfill bacteria and other soil organisms “eat” it using a process called decomposition. Methane is one of the waste products of bacteria. Methane has a warming potential about 25-36 times greater than carbon dioxide. It absorbs more energy than carbon dioxide. Methane stays in the atmosphere for a shorter amount of time, about 12 years compared to over one hundred years for CO2. So decreasing methane emissions gives fast and powerful results in decreasing the amount of heat getting trapped in the atmosphere.
We still need to continue to decrease CO2 emissions by using less fossil fuels and planting and retaining long lived trees to remove CO2. Composting and decreasing the amount of food and kitchen waste in landfills is useful and important because decreasing methane emission will give faster results than just decreasing CO2 emissions alone. An added benefit is adding compost to soil increases the capacity of the soil to capture and sequester carbon by supporting plant and root growth.
Action - Keep Carbon Local
Advocate at the County level. Ask the Board of Supervisors to exempt community composters from exclusive franchise agreements, permit farm compost cooperatives, amend zoning laws, and encourage best practices.
Vermiculture (Worm Composting)
Make a DIY worm bin and compost all of your plant-based kitchen waste. You can learn how to do this by attending a Master Gardener Composting class or use the educational materials on the Master Gardeners of El Dorado County Composting webpage.
Start a local community or farm composting cooperative. Read stories about the benefits and challenges in this document from the Sustainable Economies Law Center.
El Dorado County Resources
El Dorado County has a countywide plan developed and maintained by the El Dorado Solid Waste Advisory Committee (EDSWAC). EDSWAC was established by AB939, a state law passed in 1990 with the aim to divert 75% of waste away from landfills and to recycling, compost, reuse, etc.
The plan was reviewed in 2015, and indicated several pilot programs for composting food waste, in preparation for complying with AB1826 in 2016, a state law passed requiring businesses producing a certain amount of waste to separate their organic waste for collection and composting. The minimum amount of weekly waste produced in order for a business to be required to separate their organic waste is reduced as time passes, and in 2022 all businesses that produce more than 2yd3/week will fall under the program’s requirements.
Mandatory Commercial Organics Recycling
Not yet included in the current plan, but required to be incorporated soon (2022) is residential organic waste collection, as part of SB1383, the Short-lived climate pollutants reduction bill. When food and yard waste ends up in the landfill, it generates methane emissions (a short lived, but potent, climate pollutant), so diverting this waste to composting or digesters is a key element of the plan to reduce methane emissions. While not yet included in the plan, the Environmental Services Joint Powers’ Authority (ESJPA) has made it a priority in their meetings over the last couple of years. Additionally, El Dorado Disposal and South Tahoe Refuse were running pilot programs with different compostors (CleanWorld and Full Circle Compost, respectively).
Senate Bill (SB) 1383 establishes a goal of reducing the volume of organic waste disposed in California landfills by 75% by 2025. The law covers a wide range of organic products, including lawn and landscaping debris, wood and lumber, food, food-soiled paper, and other paper and cardboard products. Currently, two thirds of this material is landfilled. As these items break down in landfills, they create methane, a powerful greenhouse gas which the state of California has identified as a factor in climate change.
By recycling more paper products and turning food scraps and yard waste into compost or renewable natural gas, we can dramatically reduce methane emissions. In addition, SB 1383 establishes a goal of increasing edible food recovery by 20% by 2025. The regulations specify that certain food-related businesses must donate the maximum amount of edible food they would otherwise dispose to food recovery organizations. Mandated food donors fall into two tiers, with the larger food providers, such as wholesale food vendors and supermarkets, affected first. These Tier 1 food businesses will need to have donation programs in place by January 1, 2022.
El Dorado Disposal is planning for programs that will help residents and businesses meet the goals of SB 1383.
In the meantime, follow these simple tips:
• Recycle all clean, dry paper and cardboard products.
• Keep lawn and landscaping debris separate from trash and recyclables.
• If you operate a business or manage a multi-family property, ensure that you have both recycling and yard waste collection services in place.
• Donate edible food to food pantries and other food rescue agencies to feed the hungry rather than tossing it into the trash.
The Current Plan can be found here: https://www.edcgov.us/Government/emd/solidwaste/pages/swmplan.aspx
El Dorado County currently uses several different waste management companies in different areas of the county. Each Franchisee has information available on their specific programs. The county, and the franchises it hires to manage the waste collection and disposal, must accommodate the requirements of these state laws, and are doing so in a variety of ways.
In addition to the collection requirements mandated by the state laws, El Dorado County also has outreach and education programs for Home Composting. El Dorado Disposal has a home composting and vermiculture demonstration project at its Truck Street facility. They also offer composting classes on request - Email Education and Outreach Coordinator Kristina Noble at Kristinan@wasteconnections.com for more information (flyer, pg 4).