U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyU.S. Environmental Protection AgencyFood Scrap WebinarFood Scrap WebinarMarch 2010

Composting comes to the 21Composting comes to the 21stst centurycentury

By Peter Anderson, Executive DirectorCenter for a Competitive Waste Industry

Key pointsKey points✔✔✔✔ The ability of expanded organics programs

to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions provides a potent new reason for more communities to become involved, along with the earlier motivations to increase diversion and lessen landfills’ threats to groundwater

✔✔✔✔ When organics programs capitalize on their synergies to reduce the frequency of trash collection, they can both double diversion and produce savings to offset the cost of the new programs

✔✔✔✔ Processing food scraps creates potential odor problems that, ultimately, may require more expensive enclosed systems

✔✔✔✔ In 2009, 121 communities in North America had moved beyond recycling to composting

Opportunity knocked Opportunity knocked for recyclersfor recyclers

Opportunity is knocking Opportunity is knocking for compostersfor composters

Landfills release more Landfills release more methane than methane than recognizedrecognized

75%

20%

EPA IPCC

Gas Collection EfficiencyBest systems peak performance

Typical units average performance

And the warming And the warming impact is much impact is much greater greater

21 23 2534

105

1996 2001 2007 2009 2009

Multiplied Times CO2

Methane's Hyper Warming Potential

\_ when measured over 100 years _/ \_Over 20 years_/

4 minute mile in 2 4 minute mile in 2 secondsseconds

LandfillsLandfills’’ true impact true impact on greenhouse gaseson greenhouse gases

2%

8%

12%

EPA VersionCorrected Capture

Considering Short Term

Landfill methane is Landfill methane is from rotting organicsfrom rotting organics

GLASS6.9%

METALS9.0%

PLASTICS19.0%

ORGANICS62.6%

OTHER2.5%

All Materials

Paper45.2%

Food36.9%

Yard14.0%

Other3.9%

Organics Only

Disposed of in the U.S. After Recycling - 2007

Muncipal Solid Waste Composition

Percentages for

Enormous potentialEnormous potential

40.8

25.5

17.3

SSOFood ScrapsSoiled Paper

in the United StatesSource Separated Organic

Kitchen catcherKitchen catcher

Three cart setThree cart set--outout

Split body truckSplit body truck

CollectionCollection

Different Collection Strategies for Separate Collection of Source Separated Organics

Material Streams Collection Frequency

I Wet (Food, soiled paper and other wet contamination)

↔*Dry (Recyclables and rubbish)

Weekly

II Rubbish Recyclables ↔ Organics** Weekly

IIIRubbish Biweekly

Recyclables ↔ Organics** Weekly

IVRubbish ↔ Recyclables Biweekly

Organics** Weekly

V Rubbish ↔ Recyclables ↔ Organics** Biweekly

Powerful synergiesPowerful synergies

($0.32)

$0.00 $0.19

($0.13)

($2.31)

$2.50

$0.76 $0.95

($2.31)

$3.75

$0.76

$2.20

ProcessingAvoided Collection

Avoided LF & GHGNet

IncrememtalExpansion-BiWkExpansion-Mon

Organics from LandfillsNet Costs of Diverting

(Excluding the costs to collect separated organics)

Covered windrowsCovered windrows

ProcessingProcessing

Cities separatingCities separatingfood and soiled paperfood and soiled paper

12

418

340

13

111

31

312

British ColumbiaNew Brunswick

Nova ScotiaOntarioQuebec

CaliforniaFlorida

IowaMaine

MassachussetsMichigan

MinnesotaTexas

VermontWashington

BY STATE OR PROVINCE (2008)NUMBER OF ORGANICS PROGRAMS

U.S.CAN

To read Beyond Recycling report www.beyondrecycling.org/pdf_files/FinalReport.pdf

To exchange information with colleaguesJoin on-line forum at beyondrecycling.org

For more informationPeter Anderson -anderson@recycleworlds.net orGary Liss - gary@garyliss.org