West
Behind schedule: California bit off more than it could chew food with food waste recycling goals
Two years after California launched an effort to keep organic waste out of landfills, the state is so far behind on getting food recycling programs up and running that it’s widely accepted next year’s ambitious waste-reduction targets won’t be met.
Over time, food scraps and other organic materials like yard waste emit methane, a gas more potent and damaging in the short-term than carbon emissions from fossil fuels. California’s goal is to keep that waste from piling up in landfills, instead turning it into compost or biogas.
Everything from banana peels and used coffee grounds to yard waste and soiled paper products like pizza boxes counts as organic waste. Households and businesses are now supposed to sort that material into a different bin.
OFFICIALS CALL ON EPA TO COMBAT ALARMING FOOD WASTE AND METHANE EMISSIONS
But it has been hard to change people’s behavior in such a short period of time and cities were delayed setting up contracts to haul organic waste due to the pandemic. In Southern California, the nation’s largest facility to convert food waste into biogas has filed for bankruptcy because it’s not getting enough of the organic material.
“We’re way behind on implementation,” said Coby Skye, the recently retired deputy director for environmental services at Los Angeles County Public Works. “In America, for better or worse, we want convenience, and it’s very difficult to spend a lot of time and effort educating people about separation.”
Meanwhile, some communities that ramped up collection now have more compost than they know what to do with, a sign that more challenges are yet to come as the nation’s most populous state plows ahead with its recycling plans.
Trash is unloaded at the Otay Landfill, a site that processes 200 tons of organic waste daily and hopes to double that amount as more cities ramp up collection, in Chula Vista, Calif., on Jan. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
Only a handful of states mandate organics recycling, and none are running a program as large as California’s, which seeks to slash by 75% the amount of organic waste it sends to landfills by 2025 from 2014 levels.
Reaching that goal within a year would be a stretch, experts said.
About three-quarters of communities are currently collecting organic waste from homes, said Rachel Machi Wagoner, CalRecycle’s director. While some places are lagging, her aim isn’t to punish them but to help them get started, adding that every bit helps the state move towards its goal of reducing emissions.
“My goal is about figuring out where the challenges are and getting us as quickly as possible to success,” she said.
“I don’t know when we will reach our 75% goal, but we will reach it,” she added.
CalRecycle hasn’t tallied data yet on how much organic waste was diverted from landfills in 2023. Jurisdictions reported diverting 11.2 million tons of organics at the end of 2022, up from 9.9 million tons the prior year, Wagoner said.
Some challenges include getting residents on board with sorting their trash into a third bin and knowing what goes where. Others concern what to do with the nutrient-rich compost once it’s been created from collected grass clippings, tree branches and food scraps.
At Otay Landfill near the Mexican border, workers pick through heaps of branches and leaves to pull out plastic bits before the material is placed under tarps. The site processes 200 tons of organic waste daily and hopes to double that amount as more cities ramp up collection, said Gabe Gonzales, the landfill’s operations manager.
Once the compost is made, California’s law requires cities to use much of it. But many say they don’t have enough space to lay it all out.
Chula Vista, a San Diego County city of 275,000 people, is supposed to use 14,000 tons of compost a year but uses a few thousand at best, said Manuel Medrano, the city’s environmental services manager. Some is doled out in free compost giveaways for residents, while heaps of the material are stored in a fenced area of a local park.
“To transport it is really expensive, to spread it is really expensive,” Medrano said. “We’re nowhere near meeting that requirement.”
Communities with more open space might fare better. Cody Cain, head of marketing and sales for compost-maker Agromin, said his company has developed a plan to link cities struggling to meet these requirements with farmers who need the material for their soil.
“We basically are matchmakers. Call us the ‘Tinder’ of compost, and we’ll bring the farmer together with the city,” Cain said.
Food waste also can be converted into biogas to fuel vehicles or industrial operations. But a massive facility built three years ago in the Southern California city of Rialto now finds itself facing bankruptcy after Los Angeles was slow to ramp up collection, leaving the plant with insufficient waste, said Yaniv Scherson, chief operating officer for Anaergia Inc.
“It’s because the cities didn’t enforce on time the market is struggling,” he said. “If it doesn’t get feedstock this year, there is a chance it shuts down completely.”
LA Sanitation & Environment, which handles trash and recycling for the city of nearly 4 million people, had no immediate comment.
Heidi Sanborn, founding director of the environmental National Stewardship Action Council, said she supports the state’s law but wants more done to keep plastics out of compost and to develop alternative energy solutions. Some of California’s challenges stem from the fact the state is trying to build a system on a scale the country hasn’t seen, she said.
“We’re trying to fix incredibly tough problems. We’re not going to find the perfect solution out of the gate,” she said.
But, Sanborn added, “we’re on our way.”
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Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed a law designating May 17 as Bruce Lee Day, honoring the legacy of the San Francisco-born actor and martial arts icon.
According to Asm. Matt Haney, who authored the proposal, the annual day of recognition honors Lee’s impact on film, culture, and Chinese American history, and makes him the first Chinese American commemorated with a day in California.
“To be the first Chinese American recognized this way is a testament to my father’s enduring legacy and the countless lives he continues to touch,” said Shannon Lee, founder and CEO of the Bruce Lee Foundation and Lee’s daughter.
Lee was born in San Francisco in 1940, while his parents were travelling for an international opera tour, but returned to Hong Kong soon after. May 17 was chosen to mark the day Lee left Hong Kong and returned to San Francisco at age 18, a pivotal moment that helped launch his acting and martial arts teaching career.
An international star who transformed martial arts cinema and introduced global audiences to Asian-led storytelling, Lee’s philosophy of adaptability, discipline and self-expression has made him a cultural icon who continues to influence athletes, artists and educators around the world. His films challenged Asian stereotypes that were prevalent in American media at the time, and launched a “kung fu craze” in the 1970’s.
“Bruce Lee represents the very best of California: innovation, diversity, determination, and the courage to challenge convention. Born in San Francisco, he transformed martial arts, redefined Hollywood, and inspired millions around the world to pursue their potential,” Haney said in a statement. “At a time when Asian Americans were too often absent from or stereotyped on screen, Bruce Lee helped generations see themselves represented with strength and dignity.”
According to Haney’s office, the state will encourage voluntary commemorative events across California, including school lessons, cultural exhibits and public events highlighting Lee’s contributions and history.
“Beyond the silver screen, Bruce Lee was a beacon for inclusiveness and tolerance and we feel strongly that his legacy needs to be remembered not only as the world famous martial artist and movie star but as an advocate of bridging diverse communities in the pursuit of equal representation and excellence,” said Justin Hoover, the creative director of Chinese Historical Society of America.
The first Bruce Lee Day will take place on May 17, 2027.
See social media react to LeBron James leaving the Lakers
After eight seasons in Los Angeles, LeBron James will return for his 24th season, but not with the Lakers.
The King and the Joker together?
Is it possible that LeBron James could join the Denver Nuggets?
The 41-year-old James plans to play in 2026-27 for his 24th NBA season, but he’s informed the Lakers it will be with another team.
It seems like the Nuggets may be at least somewhat interested in pairing James with star Nikola Jokic. The Nuggets have reached out to James, the Denver Post reported on July 1.
Brian Windhorst of ESPN said he has “long believed” the Nuggets could be an “outlier” team in part because of James’ admiration for Jokic.
The Nuggets recruited James when he was a free agent in 2018 before he signed with the Lakers.
LeBron James next team betting odds
Where do the sports books think James is going? Sports betting company DraftKings Sports does not have the Nuggets high on the list.
There are 10 teams that DraftKings believes are most likely to land James in free agency after he turned down the Lakers.
DraftKings believes James will choose to sign with one of the following teams at some point this summer: Golden State Warriors, Miami Heat, Detroit Pistons, Cleveland Cavaliers, San Antonio Spurs, Dallas Mavericks, Milwaukee Bucks, Brooklyn Nets, Washington Wizards and Philadelphia 76ers.
DraftKings Sports odds: LeBron James landing spots
Here are the full odds for the top 10 landing spots this free agency period for James, a four-time champion, Finals MVP and league MVP:
- Golden State Warriors: -250
- Cleveland Cavaliers: +170
- Miami Heat: +800
- San Antonio Spurs: +3000
- Detroit Pistons: +3000
- Dallas Mavericks: +3000
- Milwaukee Bucks: +4000
- Brooklyn Nets: +4000
- Washington Wizards: +5000
- Philadelphia 76ers: +5000
Sports reporter Kevin Lytle can be found on social media on X, Instagram and Threads @Kevin_Lytle and on Bluesky.
SEATTLE — Sharp divisions emerged Wednesday as Seattle residents, housing advocates and environmental activists sparred over a proposal that would dramatically reshape the city’s land-use appeals process.
At issue is legislation proposed by Seattle City Councilmember Eddie Lin. The bill would eliminate State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) appeals to the city’s Hearing Examiner for major legislative actions, including Comprehensive Plan amendments and development regulations.
It prompted impassioned testimony at a public hearing before the Seattle City Council’s Land Use Committee, which Lin chairs.
Lin said his bill would prevent costly delays that have slowed housing production and climate-focused planning. Opponents countered that it would strip residents of one of their few affordable avenues for holding city government accountable on environmental issues before projects move forward.
Lin said that concentrating new housing in dense, walkable neighborhoods near transit reduces suburban sprawl, preserves forests and farmland, lowers greenhouse gas emissions and limits pollution harmful to salmon and orcas.
Lin said Seattle can achieve both affordable housing and a healthy urban tree canopy through thoughtful planning. However, having projects repeatedly delayed by appeals that ultimately have little legal standing is something the city cannot afford, Lin said.
Over the past several years, Washington lawmakers have expanded exemptions within SEPA specifically to reduce red tape for housing production. But Seattle’s municipal code still allows administrative appeals on many actions that state law has already exempted.
Although those appeals are frequently dismissed because of state law, city officials said the process itself can significantly delay legislation.
Under Lin’s proposal, residents could no longer file administrative SEPA appeals before the Hearing Examiner for major legislative actions. Instead, challenges would have to be brought before the Washington Growth Management Hearings Board or King County Superior Court.
During the public hearing, opponents said such a change would effectively place environmental appeals beyond the reach of many residents because pursuing litigation requires attorneys and substantially higher costs.
Several speakers warned that raising the financial barrier to appeals would disproportionately silence neighborhoods and community groups with limited resources.
Environmental advocates also argued the legislation removes an important layer of independent oversight before major decisions become law. They said appeals have historically uncovered flaws in Environmental Impact Statements, revealed previously undisclosed information and prompted improvements before projects advance.
The debate is expected to intensify as Seattle prepares for the next phase of updating its Comprehensive Plan under Mayor Katie Wilson’s administration. The forthcoming environmental review of the plan, which includes proposals for taller and denser development across the city, is likely to make the question of who can challenge environmental reviews a central issue in the coming year.
No vote was taken following Wednesday’s public hearing. The legislation will return to the City Council for further consideration.
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