New York began implementing a program of harvest of waste organic on a large scale, but this historic initiative generates discomfort from many of the local groups dedicated to compostingsubjected to critics cutouts financial.
Queens resident John Surico started separating his food scraps seven years ago.
At that time, he was carrying the waste organic that he kept frozen in his refrigerator throughout the neighborhood to a place of special collection.
- “It was a commitment,” he recalled. “But now, all I have to do is lower my stairs“he told AFP.
After its installation in the populous districts of Queens and Brooklyn, New York intends to equip the entire city with new containers collection in brown and orange before the end of 2024.
Starting next year, the classification of waste organic it will be mandatorywith a possible fine if not done.
There is a lot at stake for a city that generates 11,000 tons of waste every day, of which a third is remains of food and gardening.
Last year, the waste organic They only represented 3% of the total recycledaccording to figures from the Department of Sanitation (DSNY).
Mayor Eric Adamsduring the publicized inauguration in early January of an expansion of the composting largest in the city, praised the new initiative as “an incredible achievement.
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The Staten Island facility will now be able to process up to 95,000 tons of organic waste per year, thanks to a new accelerated treatment method (composting in aerated static piles) that cuts decomposition time in half.
“We are becoming a national model of management environmental“said Jenifer Rajkumar, a member of the New York state assembly representing Queens.
The city will also expand its network of “containers smart” trash cans, equipped with Bluetooth and into which New Yorkers can throw waste organic any time.
‘Human component’
The groups of volunteers and community organizations that were already active in the composting They received the new plan with skepticism.
This is partly because a good number of the waste organic collected will not be transformed into fertilizer, but will be introduced into a hood waste facility located in Brooklyn, producing domestic natural gas.
The other reason is linked to the elimination of subsidies awarded to organizations composting existing.
- One of the largest, Big Reuse, had to lay off 16 of its 19 employees, according to one of the remaining workers, Gil López. This nonprofit is now at risk of losing its main operating site in Queens.
Although several members of the city government advocated restoring municipal funding, “the mayor has not backed down,” said López.
Mill, a new company management of waste of food, made a donation of $350,000, but only delayed the deadline by a few months.
“No one wants to finance the composting community if the city doesn’t commit,” said Marisa DeDominicis, co-founder of the NGO Earth Matter NY, an organization that allows Governors Island, in New York Harbor, to recycle its own waste organic.
“In a way I understand that if you govern a city, you have to look at the end result, but we have to take into account the human component in everything and anything. (…) It’s about uniting around the recycling and the sustainability“, argued Andrea Lieske, the Earth Matter NY.
The sites of composting locals also work with numerous gardens communities and other places, providing logistical support and technical knowledge.
The history of recycling of organic in New York also shows that the fingerprint of carbon of the activities of management of waste at the local level is significantly better than the harvest massive on sidewalks, where trucks sometimes travel dozens of kilometers to their final destination.
When it comes to the community, Big Reuse, like others, also works with children, students and businesses to raise awareness about the value of waste organic.
For Gil López, “to one motion reality in New York City is being completely denied the service“.
2024-03-07 21:15:00
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