Flores, Valeric
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Monday, January 10, 2022 4:05 PM
Flares, Valeric
Public Comment - MSC January 11, 2021 - Item 1. Organic Waste Collection CAUTION: This email was delivered from the Internet. Do not click links or open attachments unless you know the content is safe. Report phish using the Phish Alert Button. Learn more....
Item 1 on the agenda for the January 11,2022 meeting of MSC is "DIRECT CITY ATTORNEY TO DRAFT AN AMENDMENT TO PASADENA MUNICIPAL CODE CHAPTER 8.60 SOLID WASTE COLLECTION ORDINANCE FOR ORGANICS COLLECTION (SB 1383)."
Municipal Services Committee must demand an accounting of how we have arrived at this woeful state of affairs, and how Public Works has pursued and implemented the next steps as outlined in the 2014 Zero Waste Strategic Plan. The request from Public Works for an amended ordinance is premature because the instructions for residential waste collection oforganics ("food scraps") on the City of Pasadena Solid Waste website do not represent a serious or meaningful plan:
Residential refuse customers will be required to place food waste into their yard waste container to be recycled.
The food waste must be placed in a plastic or compostable bag when placing them in the container.
Public Works current proposal for disposal of food waste by residential refuse customers is a stop-gap measure in lieu of a plan. Who sorts through the yard waste and removes the bags of food waste? Where is it sorted? Where is the food waste sent? What happens to the plastic bags?
Whereas in 2013, Green Waste could be used as alternative daily cover to reduce the usage of virgin soil cover materials in landfills, it is now classified as Organic Waste (2021) and is prohibited from disposal in landfills. After bags of food waste have been removed from the yard waste container, what is done with the yard waste (Yard Trimmings, Grass Clippings, Leaves, Branches and Stumps, Prunings)?
Definitions have changed: GREEN WASTE (2013) is not the same as ORGANIC WASTE (2021).
GREEN WASTE (2013) LA County Public Works | ORGANIC WASTE (2021) LA Co Public Works Yard Trimmings, Grass Clippings, Leaves,
Branches and Stumps, Prunings
Green Waste IS NOT
Treated Wood, Manure, Food Waste.
Note: Green Waste could be used as alternative
daily cover to reduce the usage of virgin soil
cover materials in Landfills.
All Food, Food Scraps, Food Soiled Paper,
Landscaping Waste, Wood, Manure, Organic
Textiles
Note: When Organic Waste is buried in a landfill
and decomposes, it releases methane. Organic
Waste must not be put in Landfills.
Item 10 or the 2014 Zero Waste Strategic Plan is to "Implement diversion programs for food scraps and other organic and compostable materials". Next Steps were supposed to include:
1 Investigate best practices for organics diversion and facilitate options for the collection and processing of food scraps and other organic and compostable materials...
Keep City staff, elected officials and the community abreast of legislation concerning food waste diversion and support as appropriate.
Investigate alternatives to sending residential yard waste to the landfill to be used as ADC.
Haul a limited number of residential yard waste loads over a three to six month timeframe to an organics processing facility in the region to assess feasibility and logistics.
Assess the feasibility of commingling residential yard waste with food waste for transport to an organics processing facility in the region and potential design of a six month residential organics collection pilot.
CLEARLY NOT BEST PRACTICE: Placing residential food waste in plastic bags into yard waste bins for later removal. When? Where? By whom? The Staff Report estimates the cost of this step at $400,000. How is this calculated? Where are the details?
FOR HOW MANY MONTHS WAS RESIDENTAIL YARD WASTE TRANSPORTED TO OXNARD AS PART OF A COLLECTION PILOT PROGRAM? In 2020, the City of Pasadena and LA County Sanitation District "worked together to compost city generated residential yard waste at the Agromin composting site in Oxnard", hauling it approximately 65 miles. How much carbon dioxide and other pollutants was put into the atmosphere for these trips to Oxnard by refuse trucks? What is the cost to transport and process Pasadena's residential yard waste in Oxnard? Agromin Launches California Compost To Help Jurisdictions Comply With SB 1383's Annual Organic Waste Procurement Requirements | Citizens Journal HOW HAS PUBLIC WORKS KEPT CITi/ STAFF, COUNCIL AND RESIDENTS ABREAST OF ISSUES REGARDING FOOD WASTE DIVERSION?
WHERE IS THE PROGRESS REPORT ON STEPS ACTUALLY TAKEN TO IMPLEMENT FOOD WASTE DIVERSION AS OUTLINED IN THE ZERO WASTE STRATEGIC PLAN?
For many years, Reco/ogyofSan Mateo County, California has collected food waste along with food & beverage soiled paper products, and yard trimmings, all in the same "compost" bin. Recology offers free kitchen pails to collect kitchen scraps (see "Three Carts" link).
Your Three Carts I Recologv San Mateo County
The purpose of SB 1383 is to prevent the production and release of methane from landfill sites. However, that does not preclude the need to reduce carbon dioxide and other vehicle emissions. The City of Pasadena should have been working with other jurisdictions to develop a meaningful plan for disposal of organic waste, including a local facility to process organic waste. Revisions to the municipal code are of little value if the underlying plan to prevent release of methane from landfill and carbon dioxide from vehicle emissions is inadequate.
Where are the free kitchen pails to collect kitchen scraps? Why doesn't Public Works provide compostable bags for kitchen scraps? Genette Foster
Pasadena 91106
2 Flores, Valerie
Subject:FW: Public Comment for MSC Item #1 -1/11/22
From: Jonathan Levy
Sent: Tuesday, January 11, 2022 12:00 PM
To: Flares, Valeric <[email protected]>
Subject: Public Comment for MSC Item #1 -1/11/22
Dear Vice Mayor Wilson, MSC members and staff,
I am writing to express my support of Item #1 to direct the City Attorney's office to amend the municipal code to include an ordinance for organics collection. As a solid-waste and recycling consultant I work with waste haulers, public works departments and municipalities throughout the state. It is worth noting that as of January 1, 2022, the City of Pasadena was one of few jurisdictions in the region to be in compliance with the curbside residential organics recycling collection requirement by working with the Scholl Canyon Landfill and Puente Hills MRF to allow all residential customers to commingle food waste with their existing yard waste collection.
In contrast, many jurisdictions in the region are either delaying this rollout, or implementing pilots over the next 6- to 12-months.
The next phase of SB 1383 implementation is the addition oforganics recycling programs at the majority of commercial generators and multi-family dwellings throughout the city and the implementation of edible food donation at impacted Tier 1 and Tier edible food generators, such as grocery stores, schools and hospitals. (https://www.calrecycle.ca.gov/oreanics/slcp)
-s
An enforcement mechanism to allow for the requirement of organics recycling for commercial and multi-family customers is not only a requirement of SB 1383, but is a necessary tool to ensure that all generators in the City do their part to meet these requirements.
I encourage the MSC to swiftly direct the City Attorney's office to draft an ordinance so that the City can continue to meet the requirements of SB 1383 in a timely and effective manner.
Sincerely,
Jonathan Levy
Chairperson, Pasadena Environmental Advisory Commission (District 7) Solid Waste and Recycling Consultant, Go2Zero Strategies Pasadena resident
Pasadena, 91101
Jonathan Levy | zero waste Guy | Instagram | Linkedln
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