Colorado's Front Range Advancing Community Waste Diversion RFA Opportunity

The fifth funding opportunity from the Front Range Waste Diversion program is now open. 

Approximately $4.5M is available in this funding cycle to support multiple projects. Applications must request a minimum of $25,000 in FRWD grant funds and a maximum of $2.3M to be eligible for this opportunity.

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RFA #ZW030422: Advancing Front Range Communities up the "Zero Waste Ladder"

Reaching Colorado’s ambitious waste diversion goal will take the active participation of every Front Range community, resident, and business. A key aspect of this vision, as laid out in the 2016 Colorado Integrated Solid Waste & Materials Management Plan, is for every Front Range community to ultimately provide access to universal curbside recycling and compost collections for all residents, using best practices of bundling with trash services and incentivizing through volume-based pricing, also known as Pay-As-You-Throw (PAYT). Realizing this vision requires each community to take multiple steps to advance up the “Zero Waste Ladder”. These steps include:
• conducting waste stream assessment and planning;
• pursuing public process and policy adoption;
• implementing programs; and
• public outreach and education for recycling and composting, either separately or combined.

This RFA focuses on Advancing Community Waste Diversion. We invite grant applications to support Front Range communities in moving along this progression, regardless of where they are starting from, with the ultimate goal of reaching broad recycling and organic waste diversion goals. Eligible applications will range from communities or local institutions taking the first steps of waste audits and initial planning or comprehensive proposals for full program design and policy adoption, to cities with more mature programs applying to increase participation and reduce contamination.

In addition to increasing recycling, addressing organic waste is essential to reaching state waste diversion goals and is a major priority of the FRWD board of directors. Organic waste, including yard debris, grass clippings, and food scraps, makes up over one-third of Colorado’s waste stream but can be easily diverted to create compost and other beneficial products. This RFA also encourages applications for projects that address program planning, adoption, implementation, or expansion focused on organic waste. Eligible applications can be from affected municipalities, haulers, or for-profit or non-profit supporting entities, and may include funding for staffing for program adoption and implementation, as well as physical infrastructure such as collection bins. We encourage awardees to share information on their projects with other Front Range communities, including results and lessons learned.

Subsequent grant funding opportunities will be published three (3) times per year in January, May, and September. The focus of each RFA will alternate between a community zero waste focus (like this RFA) and a special-focus topic to be decided by the FRWD board. The board developed this regular schedule to help communities incorporate upcoming opportunities in their planning efforts. The next community zero waste RFAs are planned for release in September 2022, May 2023, and January 2023, while the next special-focus RFAs are planned for release in May 2022, January 2023, and September 2023.

All RFA-related questions must be submitted to [email protected] in writing. Questions submitted during the first round of questions are due by 3:00 pm on January 26; answers will be posted to the FRWD website on February 2. Questions submitted during the second round of questions are due by 3:00 pm on February 16; answers will be posted to the FRWD website on February 23.

Next steps:

Applications are due no later than 3:00 p.m. on Friday, March 4, 2022.