Re: Solutions to multi-client organics collection?

[Helen Spiegelman]

Our city introduced combined food/yard scraps collection about a year ago. I think this model appeals to the engineering folks who have developed a comfort level with yard trimmings collection. But I don't think they've been nearly creative enough addressing collection issues. Especially as our city's composting plant will not tolerate any plastic bags in the system (good policy that I wholeheartedly support).

 

I think time will tell that separate collection of food makes way more sense than combining it with yard trimmings. My observation (even in my own extended family) is that folks are dumping their food scraps in the huge yard bins unwrapped -- and it is a mess. The city belatedly advised folks to "wrap their scraps" -- and the sole Canadian company marketing a kitchen-scale composting bag has been running full-page ads for their product. But my observation is that bins are becoming a nuisance and this is bound to suppress uptake of separate collection. People will want to go back to wrapping kitchen scraps in plastic kitchen catcher bags and putting it into the garbage instead of the green bin. This will make a mockery of the regional ban on food scraps in garbage that is supposed to go into effect in 2015.

 

I am thinking that there is a huge opportunity to meet the householder's and food businesses' needs for effective tools and systems to handle their food scraps.

 

With this in mind, I approached Bulldog Bags (a local manufacturer of kraft lunch bags and other bags) several years ago to see if they were seeing a demand for kraft wrapping products for food scraps. They looked at me like I was crazy and steered me to their affiliate in CA that markets so-called biodegradable plastics.

 

The fact is this is a huge opportunity for a renaissance for paper-based manufacturing to replace plastics. How can the paper industry, especially here in Canada, not see the opportunity here?

 

Similarly, I am hoping we'll see vehicles scaled and designed to carry small heavy loads of wet stuff. Hopper juice on the roadways behind huge packer trucks full of yard/food waste makes cycling uphill behind them a trial...

 

Helen.

On Thu, Sep 12, 2013 at 2:22 PM, Mary Lou Van Deventer <maryl...@urbanore.com> wrote:

Russell- 

The City of Berkeley's mixed organics program works great.  Residents get weekly curbside collection for mixed food and yard debris, which are composted.  Find it at http://www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/PlantDebris

Mary Lou Van Deventer 

On Sep 12, 2013, at 9:41 AM, Gary Liss wrote:

Apologies for cross-postings. 

Please email Russell if you have any good examples of shared organics collection systems.

Gary

Sent via BlackBerry from Gary Liss 
916-652-7850, www.garyliss.com

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From: "Klein, Russell (DPW)" <russel...@dc.gov>

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Date: Thu, 12 Sep 2013 09:38:45 -0400

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Subject: [JTRProfessionalRecyclersNetwork] Solutions to multi-client organics collection?

All,

 

I have some colleagues involved in city planning and waste reduction who are searching for examples of localized and/or innovative organics collection projects.

 

If you have examples to which you can refer us, the focus is on facilitating collection and outreach/education to groups of businesses (e.g. along one city block, or one food court) sharing a single food wa! ste collection site/container/system.

 

Granted, well-intended waste and recycling collection containers shared among multiple businesses can go awry, easily and often!

 

However, assuming there is anything valuable to be gained by jumpstarting groups of participants with interest in organic waste recovery (potentially inviting trained surrounding residents in the future), we’d like to see some creative models and/or discussions of lessons learned.

 

Regards,

Russell Klein

 

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[Matthew Cotton]

Helen - 

I think you are correct that in some places whether or not to co-collect food scraps with yard trimmings, the jury is still out. Co-collecting yard trimmings with food scraps is by far the most common (and cost-effective) way to collect food scraps from residential dwellings on the West Coast (of the US).  In parts of Canada, the Upper Midwest, and the East Coast, it is common to collect food scraps separately (in the places that do), perhaps largely because they don't generate yard trimmings in the winter (but food scraps are generated and collected year round).  I understand some cities in Northern Italy have stopped collecting yard trimmings altogether and collect food scraps separately.  Like everything else, there's rarely a one-size-fits-all solution.

However, I'm not sure this solves your concern regarding the issue of food stinkify-ing the collection container. Research in Italy and eastern Canada would appear to indicate that residents given bags (compostable bags) are more likely to participate in a food scraps collection program.  In a few big cities in Europe there are privately run franchises which provide on-site, mobile bin cleaning services - I understand one may be operating in the Bay Area (Northern California).  Some franchise contracts here in California require the hauler to offer bin cleaning on a scheduled basis.  While there are many Kraft paper and cellulose hybrids, traditional wood pulp-based bags may not perform as well as compostable bags, mostly on the wet-strength issue.  But all bags (plastic, compostable plastic, paper) can fail and even people who put their food scraps in with their regular garbage need to wash out their garbage cans from time to time.

Alameda County (across the Bay from San Francisco) has the largest concentration of single family residences with co-collected food scraps and yard trimmings; some of these programs have been operating for over 10 years city wide.  I have not heard significant complaints (from residents or from haulers) regarding the smell of the bins.  Certain times of the year, when the spring grass is cut, you don't need to add food scraps to make your bin stink. But it is easily rectified with a hose and a little elbow grease.

Ironically co-collecting food and yard trimmings does mitigate the free liquid issue you mention because the yard trimmings absorbs some of the free liquid.  However, the good news is that some manufacturers are designing specialty truck bodies for the increase in separate food scraps collection. These trucks - actually designed to deal with commercial food scraps loads - have burly seals, liners, and even sumps. To some extent the issues are not that far away from issues that "traditional" garbage trucks can have. You have to remember that all that food waste went somewhere before it was separately collected.

Matthew Cotton

Integrated Waste Management Consulting, LLC

19375 Lake City Road

Nevada City, CA  95959

(530) 265-4560

Fax (530) 903-4649

ma...@mattcotton.com

www.mattcotton.com

[Blair Pollock]

Janine Ralph of HDR Engineering in Ca nada has gathered a lot of program
Performance data & at recent seminar said the biodeg pl bags help & all the paper wrapping techniques don't do as we'll. people seem to like biodeg but you can't keep one for a week ( as my house does using a plastic bag that we empty into neighbor's chicken penalty hew is right there is no single solution
Sent from my iPhone