- Elizabeth Larson
- Posted On
Lakeport City Council votes to seek waiver for organic waste law
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — As the state of California is preparing to implement new food and yard waste collection and recycling rules in January, the Lakeport City Council last week voted to seek a waiver to those rules.
During a brief discussion at its meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 21, the council voted unanimously to adopt a resolution opting to affirm an exemption from the mandatory organics collection requirements of SB 1383.
Compliance Officer Andrew Britton told the council that the law has “significant implications and requirements for governments” that provide disposal services.
HIs written report explained that in 2015 the Lakeport City Council approved Resolution 2540 which was needed to allow an exemption from all requirements of AB 1826, which required jurisdictions to implement an organics recycling program for businesses by Jan. 1, 2016.
He said Lakeport, the city of Clearlake and the county of Lake all received exemption waivers from the state for AB 1826. Those waivers initially expired in early 2020 but were extended by CalRecycle until Dec. 31, 2026.
Britton explained that in September 2016, the state adopted SB 1383, which expanded the scope of AB 1826 and established methane emissions reduction targets in a statewide effort to reduce emissions of short-lived climate pollutants in various sectors of California's economy.
CalRecycle reported that the Short-Lived Climate Pollutant Reduction law, or SB 1383, is part of a comprehensive strategy to fight climate change, calling for a 75% reduction in organic waste disposal by 2025, as well as actions to ensure 20% of currently disposed edible food is redirected to Californians in need.
The law goes into effect on Jan. 1.
CalRecycle reported that food, yard and other organic waste rotting in landfills is a top source of climate super pollutants in the state, and recycling those items is one of the fastest and easiest ways Californians can fight climate change right now.
The agency said 56% of what Californians throw in landfills is food, yard scraps and other organic waste, 1.8 billion still edible meals are thrown away in California every year and 20% of California’s methane comes from landfilled food and other organic waste.
The agency told Lake County News that SB 1383 requires cities and counties to have programs to collect organic waste like food scraps, yard trimmings, cardboard and paper and turn them into compost, biofuel and energy, and grocery stores and other large, food-generating businesses to send still fresh, surplus food to feed people without enough to eat.
By Jan. 1, jurisdictions must provide mandatory organics collection services to all residents and businesses, conduct education and outreach to the community, procure recycled organics products, establish food recovery programs, secure access to recycling and food recovery capacity and monitor compliance and conduct enforcement, CalRecycle reported.
However, the agency said it has included in the regulations waivers and exemptions from certain requirements for low population, high elevation and rural areas, which either delay or exclude implementation of some of the requirements.
CalRecycle told Lake County News that for a county to be considered a rural jurisdiction, it must have a population of less than 70,000 people. Lake County’s last population estimate by the state put it at just under 64,000.
A rural county exemption is common in California solid waste regulations due to the unusually high cost of providing service to generators in these areas, CalRecycle reported.
Action needed to take advantage of exemption
Britton told the council that it needed to accept the resolution regarding the waiver in order to take advantage of the rural jurisdiction exemption CalRecycle offered for SB 1383.
He said CalRecycle’s Local Assistance liaison had received, edited and approved the resolution.
The new exemption waiver will be valid until Dec. 31, 2026, if approved by CalRecycle, Britton said.
When this new waiver concludes in 2026, Britton said the city may qualify for a low population waiver.
Councilman Michael Green moved to approve the resolution affirming the exemption, which the council approved 5-0.
During the meeting, Britton noted that both the city of Clearlake and the county of Lake are taking similar action, having also initiated the process for applying for a waiver to SB 1383.
CalRecycle said that Lake County is eligible for a rural exemption under the SB 1383 regulations and it currently has an exemption from the mandatory commercial organics recycling law also, meaning it will not have to implement the organics recycling collection requirements until Jan. 1, 2027.
“This exemption means they will be waived from some of the other requirements related to organic waste collection, such as education on collection, capacity planning for organic waste collection, organic waste product procurement, and some of the reporting, inspections, and enforcement requirements,” CalRecycle told Lake County News.
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