Dive Brief:

• Last year, Seattle leaders inked an ordinance banning food waste and compostable paper from being mixed with residential garbage, and it seems the change is being embraced by residents. Commingling of compostable food waste and yard waste, recyclables, and landfill-bound trash is now forbidden. No more than 10% of the contents of a residential garbage bin can be compostable food waste or recyclable items such as cans.
• Organic materials such as food waste and yard waste now are placed in their own garbage bin. The new law is an evolution of Seattle’s longstanding practice of separating yard waste from other garbage for residential curbside pickup, which the city has done since 1988. That effort morphed to include vegetable food waste in 2005, followed by all food waste and compostable paper in 2009. The difference with the new law is that now, separating food waste is mandatory, rather than voluntary as in the past.
• Prior to passing the food waste ordinance last year, Seattle’s food waste separation effort was getting about half the available food waste and compostable paper, said Hans Van Dusen, of Seattle Public Utilities.

Dive Insight:

Seattle has been trashing about 100,000 pounds of food waste annually that goes into a landfill, according to Seattle Public Utilities’ reports. Seattle Public Utilities’ believes that the new food waste ordinance will keep 38,000 tons of food scraps out of the landfill, to be composted.