New California Law Requires Food Waste To Be Composted!

California Takes Big Step!

I know I know, people don’t usually get excited about new rules. No shoes in the house rule, knock on the door before I go into my sister’s room rule, etc. But this time a lot of people should be excited! And we all must participate to make a huge difference.

California’s new law requires people to recycle their food scraps and other leftovers. Many cities are still figuring out how to apply the new regulations (as of Feb 2022) but the City of Santa Monica is already taking action mandating residents to use their green bins to recycle food waste. 

Why do we need to do this? Approximately 30-40% of the food produced in the US is not eaten. And the greenhouse gases associated with food waste are huge. The food waste produces methane when it rots in a landfill, and that contributes to climate change. Methane again! 

Although methane stays in the atmosphere for far less time than carbon dioxide does, as mentioned on the previous post, Methane has more than 80 times the warming power of carbon dioxide within the first decades of being released into the atmosphere. If we can reduce methane, then we help slow down global warming. 

Imagine all the Californians keeping organic waste out of the landfill. That would be a huge contribution to the planet!

The state still needs to figure out how to start this recycling program smoothly. The plan is to start converting food waste into compost or energy in order to avoid these emissions. We still need anywhere from 50 to 150 large compost or anaerobic digestion centers.

But even though the compost law requires some effort I’m pretty sure we will all feel better to know we are doing something for the Earth. 

We still need to reduce our food waste. Let's all try to waste less food at home. It is a good idea to respect meal providers such as farmers, store sellers, drivers and families who are buying healthy food for you. And be responsible about where our food waste goes. That’s helping the earth. 

If you want to know more about CA's new food waste regulations visit this link:

https://calrecycle.ca.gov/organics/slcp/collection/