Get ready to stop throwing those apple cores, banana peels, egg shells and more in the trash, as the California composting mandate goes into effect at the first of the year.
The goal is to reduce Methane emissions — such as those from organic waste at landfills — which are reportedly 84 times more potent than carbon dioxide as a greenhouse gas. While methane doesn’t stick around in the atmosphere nearly as long as the carbon dioxide emitted by cars and trucks, its short-term impact is dramatic.
So start preparing now to take such actions as keeping a bucket under the sink for food waste, start your own compost pile or take your organic waste to a neighbor who does, or to put it in a green yard-waste bin from your trash hauler. Whgatever the method the new law calls for recycling station stations and all other sorts of ways for trash haulers and communities to help residents as the law phases in next year. compost pail in her kitchen.
State rules call for cities and counties to have organic waste reduction plans in place by Jan. 1, with local jurisdictions and haulers enacting those plans throughout 2022. The target is a 75% reduction by 2025. State officials said hitting that goal would provide the same greenhouse gas relief as removing 1.7 million cars from the road.
Los Alamitos ‘ new trash-hauling contract with Universal Waste Systems of Los Angeles puts it ahead of the schedule to meet the new state mandates. Because of Universal’s eagerness to get a strong foothold in the Orange County market, they offered terms that “provides the same level of service and in some cases enhanced services for our residents and businesses,” said Mayor Mark Chirco. Chirco added that the rates for Los Alamitos businesses will be favorable and those for residents “being the lowest or among the lowest in all of Orange County.”
Rossmoor, being an unincorporated part of Orange County, has their trash hauling covered by the county’s contract with CR&R. That company will also roll out in 2022 a new three-bin collection system for regular waste, recyclables, and green/food waste. Residents will be required to properly separate discarded materials in the appropriate bins. A CR&R presentation to residents can be viewed below.
oclandfills.com/household-hazardous-waste.
What you need to know about California’s new composting law — a game changer for food waste
