A bill mandating organic waste collection and one to address the release of methane from landfills both pass the Legislature.
Reducing organics going to the landfill
HB 1799 is the bill with the ambitious goal to reduce food and yard waste in landfills by 75% in eight years. To do that, the bill focuses
some of its attention on how cities can play a role in collection of organics, siting management facilities, and procuring the result—compost. From the outset, AWC supported the goal of HB 1799 and worked with the proponents
to craft provisions that were more workable for cities.
The bill requires jurisdictions with 25,000 or more in population to provide organics collection services to all residents, at least biweekly averaged over the year, and certain business starting January 1, 2027. There was a floor
amendment hung that provides an exception for jurisdictions between 25,000 and 50,000 that do not already have curbside organics collection service. Based on our data, all cities in this range already have service, so this appears to be a carve out
for rural counties.
Cities must also plan for organics collection and facility siting in their solid waste management planning process. The same cities that have a collection requirement must also adopt a compost procurement ordinance consistent with the bill and RCW 43.19A.120.
There is also a new biennial reporting requirement on compost purchasing that starts in 2024.
Landfill methane emissions
HB 1663 is a very technical bill that intends to address a potent greenhouse gas—methane. Methane is 25 times more effective in
trapping heat in the atmosphere than carbon dioxide but has a shorter “lifespan.” Landfills are a significant source of methane released in Washington (if you didn’t hear the news,
Puget Sound has a natural source of methane bubbles).
As passed the Senate, the bill is limited to only municipal solid waste landfills that received waste after January 1, 1992 and closed sites that have at least 750,000 tons of waste in place. The amended bill also establishes surface methane emissions
standards for covered landfills. HB 1663 requires quantification of landfill gas generated and emission monitoring, reporting, and capture.