Airport Diverts Food Scraps

Danielle Jackson

Following in the flight patterns of Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), the Columbus, Ohio, Airport Authority has implemented a food recycling and waste prevention program with the Solid Waste Association of Central Ohio (SWACO), Grove City, to reduce the amount of waste going into the Franklin county landfill.

The program aims to divert nearly 200 tons of waste annually from the landfill, according to Columbus Airport Authority executive director Elaine Roberts.

Currently, more than 13 million people visit the airport every year, she says. Through the program, visitors are encouraged to use proper recycling and waste containers through visual images such as universal icons and multilingual signs located throughout the airport.

The program was established as a result of a SWACO study conducted with Cambridge, Mass.-based Camp Dresser & McKee, and eventually will expand to include airport facilities and tenants outside of the terminal building, Roberts says.

Funding is being provided by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources' division of recycling and litter prevention.