In an effort to dramatically reduce methane and greenhouse gas emissions generated from landfilling food waste, the state of Washington has released Bill 1799 (HB 1799), in order to increase how organic material is reduced, managed, incentivized and regulated.
Businesses are now required to manage their organic waste in a way that does not involve landfilling. Beginning January 1, 2024 a business generating at least 8 cubic yards of organic material per week must arrange for organic material management. This criteria lowers to 4 cubic yards in order to incorporate smaller businesses in diversion in the next two years.
HB 1799 states diversion can be achieved by managing organic material on-site and notes The State is offering grant applications for equipment purchases for this purpose.
Food waste and organic recycling technologies are a great alternative to recover and divert important resources from landfills while avoiding the challenges faced by the hauling industry. Technology such as ORCA, an aerobic digester, acts as hardware and software simultaneously, empowering clients to track, reduce, and recycle all food waste on-site. ORCA acts as a giant stomach, naturally working to digest all food waste into a nutrient-rich liquid effluent, then automatically draining it into the existing sanitary sewer infrastructure.
Eliminating any transportation of food waste while providing reporting tools to help reduce this waste means businesses throughout the State have the option to incorporate an on-site food waste solution to comply with organic diversion laws such as HB 1799. The use of an ORCA creates a meaningful impact as it rapidly creates secondary resources, such as recycled water, bio-gas or fertilizer for land application through the existing wastewater infrastructure. We pride ourselves on helping our clients reduce their food waste footprint and recycle the contents in an efficient, sustainable way.
Visit Organics Management Law – Washington State Department of Ecology for more information on Washington Bill 1799
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