Proposed U.S. Federal Organic Waste Diversion PlanCALIFORNIA POLYTECHNIC STATE UNIVERSITY

Antonio Lippa, Project ManagerJenny Liu, Policy Expert Joshua Schipper, Senior Engineer Tim Dinh, Environmental SpecialistZsofia Larson, Government Affairs

Introduction

Nine Tipping Points [1]

Melting○ Greenland Ice Sheet○ Permafrost Loss○ West Antarctic Ice SheetBiome Shift○ Amazon Rainforest○ Boreal Forest○ Coral ReefCirculation Change○ AMOC Disruption○ West African Monsoon○ Indian Monsoon

[2]

Introduction

54%

Methane emissions in CA from livestock generated by farms [4]

AGRICULTURE

FARMS

16%

Only 16% of available biowaste used in compost [5]

INDUSTRY

BIOSOLIDS

40-50%

Up to 50% is still edible and costs $1,800 annually per person [3]

FOOD WASTE

CONSUMER

10%

Around $15 billion annually lost in waste fruit and vegetables [3]

SUPERMARKET

CA SB 1383: Reducing Short-Lived Climate Pollutants

[6]

CA AB 32: Reducing GHG Emissions

2008Initial Scoping Plan, Mandatory Reporting Regulations

2010Early Action Measures

2013Cap-and-Trade Program

2014Scoping Plan Update

202015% Below 1990 Emission Levels

203040% Below 1990 Emission

Levels

20182020 Goal Reached

[7]

Phases of Implementation

2020

PHASE 1:Education and Infrastructure

2025

PHASE 2:50% Diversion

2030

PHASE 3:75% Diversion

[8]

[9]

[10]

Government Structure

LOCALFEDERAL

● EPA sets national goals and monitors progress of states

● Require states to adopt organic waste plan

STATE

● Sets goals and monitors progress

● Set up regional coalitions

● Require businesses and local governments to develop organic waste plan

Grants for research, business incentives, and public outreach

FEDERAL & STATE

● Management plan specific to region

● Local infrastructure

● Food donation partnerships with NGOs

● Public education and outreach

Municipal Strategies

Volume-based Rate Structure

Compost operations employ 2x more people than landfills and 4x more people than incinerators [12]

Landfill BanFood, yard, wood, and paper waste constitute 60% of municipal solid waste [11]

Community ScaleNo collection costs and reduced transportation costs

Partnerships

Utilized by top 3 cities with highest diversion rates (San Jose, San Francisco, and Seattle) [13]

Industrial Strategies

ENCOURAGEESTABLISHEXPAND

Federal adoption of CA

AB 1826 for commercial

organic waste

Green business networks to incentivize compliance

Surplus food donation from farms, grocery

stores, and restaurants

[14]

Agriculture Strategies

Organic Waste

Agricultural Practices, Municipal / Business

Input

Low Emission Manure

Management Plan

Compost Sales

Compost Application

Animal Feed

Biogas

Cost Reduction

Sales

Landfill

Operations

SUGGESTED STRATEGIES [15]

● Commercial Farms: Anaerobic digestion and solid-liquid separation

● Intermediate Farms: Composting, anaerobic digestion

● Rural-Residential: Composting

Outreach and Education

Source Reduction

NutritionFood Label

Upscaling

Food DonationLocationsPartnershipsAcceptable Items

DiversionCompost

Waste SeparationBiogas

Decontamination Recycling

IncentivesPartnerships

Social media/apps

STRATEGIES

Education

Videos, webinars

Waste reduction challenges

Technologies and End Markets

Anaerobic Digestion

DonationContaminated

Waste

Animal Feed

Composting Facilities

Organic waste converted into

some biogas and also nutrient rich

leachate

Organic waste converted into nutrient-rich

compost

Excess food that is still useable as

food can be donated to

shelters

Excess food that is unusable to

humans can be used as feedUnprocessable waste

will remain enroute to landfill

Technologies and End Markets

$100$60$55

$55/ton[19]

Landfilling

$40-160/ton [16] [17]

Anaerobic Digestion

$40-80/ton[18]

Composting 85% 40%

percent GHG reduction from landfilling with gas capture [20]

percent GHG reduction from landfilling with gas capture [21]

Anaerobic Digestion Composting

Infrastructure Cost

$4.5 billion in total

$900 million per year

5 years

[22]

[23]

Financing

Tipping Fees

Organic Waste Products

Grants

Tipping fees will provide the primary source of revenue for composting and anaerobic digestion facilities.

Compost and digestate from plants is sold to agriculture as a revenue source for the waste program. Anaerobic digestion can produce biogas which can be similarly sold to communities as energy.

State and federal grants will be required to provide initial funding for digestion and composting facilities.

Monitoring and Enforcement

M● Waste audit data collection

● Data analysis to monitor progress

Monitoring

● Fine non-compliant industries and municipalities

● Municipalities pass fines down to the individual or business responsible

Enforcement

E

[24]

The Tweak

Government soil sustainability projects:● Erosion control● Nutrient replenishment● Carbon sequestration

A ½ inch layer of compost applied to ½ of California’s rangeland would offset

42 million metric tons of CO2e. [12]

Moving Forward

Previous Program + Evaluation = New Program

[25]

Thank you! … Questions?

References

[1] Carbon Brief, "Explainer: Nine 'tipping point' that could be triggered by climate change," 10 February 2020. [Online]. Available: https://www.carbonbrief.org/explainer-nine-tipping-points-that-could-be-triggered-by-climate-change. [Accessed 2020].

[2] Climate & Clean Air Coalition, "Short-Lived Climate Pollutants," [Online]. Available: https://www.ccacoalition.org/en/science-resources. [Accessed 2020].

[3] Food Print, "The Problem of Food Waste," [Online]. Available: https://foodprint.org/issues/the-problem-of-food-waste/. [Accessed 2020].

[4] California Air Resources Board, "California Greenhouse Gas Emissions for 2000 to 2017," [Online]. Available: https://ww3.arb.ca.gov/cc/inventory/pubs/reports/2000_2017/ghg_inventory_trends_00-17.pdf. [Accessed 2020].

[5] California Association of Sanitation Agencies, "An Evaluation of the Sustainability of Biosolids Use as Landfill Burial or Beneficial Cover Material," 11 January 2017. [Online]. Available: https://bacwa.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/1-11-17- Sustainability-for-biosolids-use-at-landfills.pdf. [Accessed 2020].

[6] R. Duard, "SB 1383 Reducing Short-Lived Climate Pollutants in California," [Online]. Available: https://www.slideserve.com/duard/green-janitorial-operations. [Accessed 2020].

[7] California Air Resources Board, "Assembly Bill 32 Overview," 2014. [Online]. Available: https://ww3.arb.ca.gov/cc/ab32/ab32.htm. [Accessed 2020].

[8] Daily Acts, "Food Waste 101," [Online]. Available: https://dailyacts.org/faq-items/food-waste-101/. [Accessed 2020].

[9] E. Levy, "MA Organics Waste Ban - Goes In Effect TODAY!," 2 October 2014. [Online]. Available: http://www.savethatstuff.com/tag/waste-diversion/. [Accessed 2020].

References[10] B.C. Campus, "Explore the Planning-Monitoring-Evaluation Cycle," [Online]. Available:

https://pressbooks.bccampus.ca/studystrategizesucceed/chapter/explore-the-planning-monitoring-evaluation-cycle/. [Accessed 2020].

[11] EPA, "Advancing Sustainable Materials Management: 2017 Fact Sheet," November 2019. [Online]. Available: https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2019-11/documents/2017_facts_and_figures_fact_sheet_final.pdf. [Accessed 2020].

[12] B. Platt, "Infographic: Compost Impacts More Than You Think," 2 April 2018. [Online]. Available: https://ilsr.org/compost-impacts-infographic/. [Accessed 2020].

[13] Citizens Budget Commission, "A Better Way to Pay for Solid Waste Management," 5 February 2015. [Online]. Available: https://cbcny.org/research/better-way-pay-solid-waste-management. [Accessed 2020].

[14] Nobly, [Online]. Available: https://www.noblypos.com/hubfs/2018%20New%20Designs%20-%20General/green-business-pp/planet.png. [Accessed 2020].

[15] H. A. Aguirre-Villegas and R. A. Larson, "Evaluating Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Dairy Manure Management Practices Using Survey Data and Lifecycle Tools," 1 February 2017. [Online]. Available: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0959652616321953. [Accessed 2020].

[16] North East Biogas, "Overview of Anaerobic Digestion and Digesters," [Online]. Available: https://archive.epa.gov/region02/webinars/web/pdf/3-24-10_1.pdf. [Accessed 2020].

[17] K. Moriarty, "Feasibility Study of Anaerobic Digestion of Food Waste in St. Bernard, Louisiana," January 2013. [Online]. Available: https://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy13osti/57082.pdf. [Accessed 2020].

References

[18] C. S. Marxsen, "Potential World Garbage and Waste Carbon Sequestration," Environmental Science & Policy, vol. 4, no. 6, pp. 293-300, 2011.

[19] Waste Today, "EREF Releases Analysis on National Landfill Tipping Fees," 29 October 2019. [Online]. Available: https://www.wastetodaymagazine.com/article/eref-releases-analysis-national-msw-landfill-tipping-fees/#:~:text=The%20average%20MSW%20landfill%20tip,fee%20was%20%2453.58%20per%20ton.. [Accessed 2020].

[20] A. Boston, B. Li and T. Shulman, "Food Waste Management + Climate Action: National GHG Reduction Potential," February 2017. [Online]. Available: http://www.nzwc.ca/focus/food/Documents/FoodWasteClimateChange-Report.pdf. [Accessed 2020].

[21] California Environmental Protection Agency, "Method For Estimating GreenHouse Gas Emission Reductions From Diversion of Organic Waste From Landfills to Compost Facilities," May 2017. [Online]. Available: https://ww3.arb.ca.gov/cc/waste/cerffinal.pdf.

[22] 50 States, "California," [Online]. Available: https://www.50states.com/images/redesign/maps/ca-largemap.png. [Accessed 2020].

[23] California Environmental Protection Agency, "Short-Lived Climate Pollutant Reduction Strategy," March 2017. [Online]. Available: https://ww2.arb.ca.gov/sites/default/files/2018-12/final_slcp_report%20Final%202017.pdf. [Accessed 2020].

[24] RoadRunner, [Online]. Available: https://www.roadrunnerwm.com/hs-fs/hubfs/WasteAudit_Icon.png. [Accessed 2020].

[25] [Online]. Available: https://cdn-a.william-reed.com/var/wrbm_gb_food_pharma/storage/images/publications/pharmaceutical-science/in-pharmatechnologist.com/article/2020/01/30/major-pharma-companies-launch-sustainability-push/10653047-1-eng-GB/Major-pharma-companies-launch-sustai. [Accessed 2020].