Los Alamos County Conducts Waste Audit

Just will document all findings in a report to LAC Environmental Services later this month, but she gave us a sneak peak at some of the largest categories of sorted, divertible materials. Yard debris made up one of the largest categories, at 720 pounds of the total sorted.

“Perhaps citizens are not aware that they can bring leaves, dead plant material and small branches to the Eco Station for recycling? This decaying material is a good nitrogen source for LAC’s composting program, so it’s sad to see so much of it going to waste,” Just said.

At 880 pounds of the total sorted, food waste made up the largest category. “This isn’t surprising,” she said. “Food waste makes up about 14 percent of the waste going into landfills, across the nation and contributes to greenhouse gas emissions. Backyard composting is a good idea, even in the desert!”