Compostable Resins Company Celebrates 30th Year

Novamont, based in Novara, Italy, is celebrating its 30th anniversary. The bioplastics company, which creates biochemicals and bioproducts, focuses on the integration of chemistry, agriculture and the environment.
Book Review: “The Waste Between Our Ears”
The Waste Between Our Ears

In times of rising heat, fire and rising waters, this new book by Gerry Gillespie presents recycling and composting as the means to achieve a zero waste economy.
Neil Seldman
Baltimore’s Fair Development Plan For Zero Waste
Baltimore's Fair Development Plan For Zero Waste

The Institute for Local Self-Reliance worked with Zero Waste Associates to prepare Baltimore’s Fair Development Plan for Zero Waste for United Workers of Baltimore.
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Music Festivals Amp Up Organics Recycling Game
Food waste and certified compostable products were accepted in the compostables bin (right). Compost Crusader, based in Milwaukee, composted the materials.

Farm Aid has greatly increased organics diversion since 2007. Inspired by its partnership with Farm Aid, Live Nation announced its zero waste goal in September 2018.
Stephanie Katsaros
BioCycle November/December 2019
Commentary: Zero Waste Requires Visionary Thinking
Rhodes Yepsen

Rhodes Yepsen
BioCycle March/April 2019
PAYT Paves Way To Zero Waste
Pay As You Throw “Clip Art” from the U.S. EPA Archives, circa 1990s.

Why progressive recycling based on how residents pay for trash dramatically reduces waste disposal.
Neil Seldman
BioCycle October 2018
Strategies To Incentivize Waste Diversion
Residents purchase 13- or 33-gallon blue trash bags (blue bag behind pink bag for reusable item donation). Natick is just completing a curbside food waste collection pilot where 500 households were give 13-gallon carts.

Focus on two communities that utilize Pay-As-You-Throw unit-based pricing to reduce disposal and increase materials and organics recycling.
Marsha W. Johnston
BioCycle October 2018
Green Sports Alliance Update 2018
Missouri Organic Recycling (MOR) conducted a field test of the compostable peanut bags in 2017.“The bags completely degraded in 49 days,”notes Kevin Anderson, Vice-President of MOR.

Among the latest developments are formation of Green Sports Alliance Japan, and commercialization of a compostable peanut bag.
Marsha W. Johnston
BioCycle June 2018
Quantifying Diversion Impact Of Compostable Packaging
A 3-bin sorting system was used to collect front-of-house materials at Farm Aid, which yielded 22,851 lbs of compostable material. Food scraps comprised 46% of that total; 54% was compostable packaging and uncoated paper.

Waste stream analysis of two events held at a concert venue identified significant quantities of front-of-house compostable material, including a large amount of food.
Charlotte Dreizen
BioCycle August 2017
Deeper Dive Into Zero Waste
Zero Waste training at Arizona State University includes sorts of the trash, recycling and organics bins to identify and eliminate challenging materials. Sorting contents of front-of-house bins, directed by Stephanie Barger of GBCI’s Zero Waste program (on right in front), shown above.

Credential and certification programs are available to universities and businesses to guide initiatives and achieve a minimum of 90 percent diversion.
Sarah Stanley
BioCycle July 2017
Los Angeles Coliseum “Modernizes” With Zero Waste
Most service ware at the LA Coliseum has been switched out with compostable products such as cups (top) and cutlery, and paper and fiber-based trays, clamshells and bowls. The Coliseum’s zero waste team opted to go with only compostables and recyclables bins (bottom) in the consumer-generated waste areas.

The football stadium, home to the USC Trojans and the LA Rams, went from zero to an average of 83 percent diversion in two seasons. Organics are key to this success.
Marsha W. Johnston
BioCycle June 2017
Organics Recycling Lands At Major Airports
SEA-TAC International Airport, servicing Seattle, accepts pre and postconsumer food waste from concessionaires and at public kiosks (above) in concourse food courts.

Where local infrastructure exists, systems are being put in place to make composting an easy addition
to waste diversion programs.
Katrina Mendrey
BioCycle June 2017
Composting Roundup
Symptoms of leaf and petiole distortion on samples were consistent with chemical injury from a growth regulator-type of herbicide.

BioCycle November 2016
University Of Alberta Strives For Zero Waste
The number of material streams was simplified from six to four, and new signage was developed accordingly for the Zero Waste stations.

Campus analyzes costs, collection systems and logistics to increase diversion of organics, which will be processed at City of Edmonton’s new AD facility. Part I
J. Kwasny, S. Leblanc, K. Yan and D. McCartney
BioCycle May 2016
Major Companies Earn Zero Waste Certifications

The U.S. Zero Waste Business Council’s certification requires facilities to have a minimum of 90 percent overall diversion from landfills, incineration and the environment.
Claire Siegrist
BioCycle February 2016
How Your Community Can Be Zero Waste In 10 Years
Thriving zero waste communities

No one has all the answers yet, but we know enough now to help any community in the U.S. make serious strides toward a Zero Waste future.
Eric Lombardi and Kate Bailey
BioCycle November 2015
Military Base Steps Up To The Net Zero Challenge
To make separation more convenient, foodservice employees can select bins that are most conducive to their particular stations. For example, a produce station uses a small round bucket atop the food bench.

Joint Base Lewis-McChord planted the seeds for net zero waste in the early 2000s. Food scraps collection from dining halls and a commissary is helping push the needle. Part I
Ashley Blazina
BioCycle June 2015
Zero Waste At Fort Drum
A “weigh and sort” done at one of Fort Drum’s dining facilities (above and below) estimated that the amount of food waste produced per meal was around 0.5 lbs/person.

The Fort Drum Army base in northern New York began collecting and composting preconsumer food scraps in Fall 2014.
Dan Emerson
BioCycle June 2015
Training The Zero Waste Workforce
Material assessments are integral to identifying all recyclables, landfill-bound waste and compostable organics. The value and composition of each material is broken down in detail in order to optimize recovery and reduce costs.

Community Environmental Services, part of Portland State University, trains and employs students to offer zero waste management services to companies, institutions and public agencies.
Neil Seldman
BioCycle November 2014
Composting, Zero Waste On NYC’s Governors Island
Volunteers assist with mixing foods scraps from New York City’s Greenmarkets with an equal amount of preblended carbon amendment to create an aerated static pile. Earth Matter NY cofounder Marisa DeDominicis in on right.

Earth Matter NY, located on Governors Island in New York Harbor, operates a Compost Learning Center, training programs, zero waste initiatives and a community composting site. Part V
BioCycle October 2014
Chicago Restaurant Generates Zero Waste … Literally
All of the food served at Sandwich Me In is sourced from regional farmers. Vrany tries to make as much as he can in-house to reduce food costs and waste.

BioCycle July 2014
Winning With Zero Waste
Zero waste sports

In the sports greening arena, the adoption of recycling and composting programs is proceeding at an increased pace. To ensure efficient and effective implementation, buy-in must occur at all levels of an organization, starting at the top.
Nate Clark
BioCycle June 2014
Zero Waste Composting
After establishing a robust prevention program, collection of the remaining SSO should be designed to leverage a community’s existing infrastructure, e.g., cocollection of SSO and recyclables.

An in-depth economic, social and environmental impact analysis factored in source reduction and home composting, as well as organics collection, composting and anaerobic digestion.
Joanna Stone, Kate Davenport and Bryan Ukena
BioCycle June 2014
Guam Advances Zero Waste Plan
The Ordot landfill was closed to new dumping in 2011, which elevated the importance of Guam’s Zero Waste Plan.

With over one million tourists annually and an increase in its military population, the island of Guam is implementing a comprehensive zero waste program.
Marsha W. Johnston
BioCycle February 2014
Fresh Look At Zero Food Service Waste
Zero Food Service Waste — The Prevention Factor

Going forward, reporting on zero waste performance should offer both a total waste generation figure and a diversion figure to ensure that every zero waste undertaking includes prevention.
Andrew Shakman
BioCycle December 2013