Top: Among recipients of the recent round of grant awards is Agromin, which will use the funds to install an aerated static pile system at its composting facility in Limoneira, CA. Photo courtesy of Agromin

The latest round of grants awarded through the California Climate Investments’ Organics Grant Program were announced by CalRecycle in mid-December. A total of $130 million was given to fund 23 infrastructure projects in 15 counties in California, which are anticipated to divert 7.7 million tons of food and yard waste from disposal and create 114 new jobs, notes the agency. Of the 23 grants awarded, seven are being used to build anaerobic digestion or codigestion capacity or for biogas conditioning; seven will be used to build new or expand existing composting facilities; four are funding new stand-alone food waste processing facilities; and five will fund procurement of on-site in-vessel composters. One of the five in-vessel systems will process cannabis waste; the other four will manage food waste. Of the seven grants awarded for anaerobic digestion, four will process food and yard waste and three are codigestion projects at wastewater treatment plants. All but one will be utilizing the biogas generated to produce renewable natural gas. In the press release announcing the awards, CalRecycle also noted that 75% of communities required to implement residential organics collection programs are now in compliance with the state’s SB 1383 regulation.