1.  The Evolving Ton  may the food scraps be with you
Athena Lee Bradley
Northeast Recycling Council

2. vision, adaptation, flexibility
“The Seattle experience is a microcosm of the evolving ton.”
- McKenna Morrigan, Cascadia Consulting
Recycling rate jumped from 58% to 74% with collection of food scraps
“The evolving ton demands that we change the way we define and measure progress”

3. Connecticut Waste Characterization Study
Organics = 41%
That’s A Lot!
Snapshot in time – wastestream is not static! And, it’s evolving ever more rapidly!
NOT a vision of the future
Doesn’t factor change in future change-technology, adaptation, preferences

4. Food scrap generators are adapting Getting down with food recovery
But wait…
Resource competition
Food scrap generators are adapting
Waste is a bottom-line issue
Getting down with food recovery
Vermont – food recovery increased 40% in 2016 under its Universal Recycling Law
Food-to people
Food-to-animals

5. Plan & design for trends
Opportunities
Multiple solutions
Drivers - Flexibility & Adaptation
Plan & design for trends
Not just waste characterization

6. Design for the Situation Small-scale AD for distribution centers
Technology
Design for the Situation
Small-scale AD for distribution centers
Large-scale AD for urban areas &/or with WWTPs
Plan before leaping
Or, could be economic failure or put/pay
Food waste/Garbage disposals
Easy solutions are not always best!

7. Composting for small-to-medium size communities
Technology
Composting for small-to-medium size communities
HRRA
Brattleboro
Backyard composting/Green Cone/Drop-off for rural areas

8. HRRA Bridgewater Curbside 32 tons since 2014 Ridgefield & Newtown
Drop-off

9. Brattleboro 2013 pilot curbside 2014 Town-wide 4.5 tons/week
2015 Pay-as-you-throw
9.5 tons/week
2016 Every other week trash
TTT – split-body trucks

10. Capture the entrepreneurial spirIt
Young people are leading the way
Garbage to Gardens, Bootstrap Composting, Gainesville Compost

11. Begin with Dialogue Big Planning is NEEDED Start Talking
Drive decisions & solutions
Systems thinking
Involve all stakeholders
Work together…

12. NERC Can Help Fee for service makes NERC’s expertise available at a
We’re experts in
Fee for service makes NERC’s expertise available at a
Waste reduction & recycling
Recycling program design & implementation
Organics management
reasonable price with outstanding results
Green procurement
C&D reuse & recycling
Electronics recycling
School reuse, recycling & composting
Athena Lee Bradley
Textile recycling programs
Multi-stakeholder dialogues & negotiations
& More!