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San Diego County Moves to Lower Waste Going to Landfills
Current programs led to the diversion of 62 percent of waste in 2015.
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San Diego’s Board of Supervisors voted Wednesday to reduce the amount of waste that goes into landfills from San Diego County’s unincorporated areas by 75 percent by 2025.
The city of San Diego originally adopted a blueprint to shrink the amount of trash produced locally to zero by 2040 in 2015.
Earlier this year, the city launched a strategic plan, which includes more employee outreach, adding dozens of recycling bins throughout city parks and other strategies for overcoming recycling obstacles.
The latest move means a franchise fee of $2.35 per ton of solid waste paid by haulers will rise to $6.96 per ton and encompass nearly all waste.
The Times of San Diego has the details:
Current programs led to the diversion of 62 percent of waste in 2015. Staff said getting up to 75 percent will necessitate a “significant, well- planned and well-funded effort.”
County staff recommended the board adopt the approved option because it “provides adequate time for industry to develop the necessary organics processing infrastructure, requires less staffing in initial years, lowers costs to customers, the industry and the county, and is supported by industry.”
The supervisors directed staff two years ago to develop the plan, which included a secondary goal of virtually eliminating waste going into landfills by 2040. Staff is recommended waiting until the 75 percent goal is achieved before the county turns to the even more ambitious target, so they can evaluate changes in waste generation and management between now and then.
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