Seattle to Fine Residents for Throwing Food in the Garbage

CNS.com ^ | January 28, 2015 | Curtis kalin

[Reverend Saltine]

Seattle to Fine Residents for Throwing Food in the Garbage

In an attempt to shame residents of their city, a new Seattle law will levy a fine on homes that do not properly sort food out of their garbage.

Emblazoned with a red citation tag, violators will start to be fined anywhere from $1-$50 in July. For now, Seattle residents will be publicly shamed by the ‘Scarlet Letter’-like tags.

US Food Waste Food waste is a big, and still growing, problem. (Charles Krupa/AP Photo) "I'm sure neighbors are going to see these on their other neighbors' cans," says Rodney Watkins, a lead driver for Recology CleanScapes, a waste contractor for the city. He's on the front lines of enforcing these rules.

The tags are part of, what the city calls, a “public education campaign.”

In an interview with NPR, Watkins details how he goes about enforcing the draconian statute:

"You can see all the oranges and coffee grounds," he says, raising one lid.” All that makes great compost. You can put that in your compost bin and buy it back next year in a bag and put it in your garden."

The ultimate goal of the law is to boost composting while reducing greenhouse gasses:

Food waste is both an economic and environmental burden. Transporting the waste, especially for distances as far as Seattle does, is costly. So too is allowing it to sit out in the open, where it produces methane, one of the most harmful greenhouses gases, as it rots. The second largest component of landfills in the United States is organic waste, and landfills are the single largest source of methane gas.

The EPA has already begun a campaign to achieve laws similar to Seattle’s.

The outstanding question remains: what purview is it of government to act as people’s trash nanny?

[SoFloFreeper]

The lock industry is going to boom.

[Democrat_media]

Seatle is run by democrats . democrats are all socialists/marxist/collectivists .they loathe individual freedom.

So they create this fake hoax called global warming. And then they enact all sorts of crazy laws to reduce green house gasses which they say causes global warming. so they already banned lighbulbs at the federal level and a million other things like this “can't throw away food” bs. these people are the enemy of individual rights and freedom and prosperity

[Pearls Before Swine]

I hate wasting food myself, but this is silly. I always thought that garbage included the organic, while trash was inorganic. Some food has to be thrown away, even if you compost, because it attracts vermin (especially true of meaty foods).

[dainbramaged]

it is across the river from Portland Oregon
Look at a map - it's a little over 170 miles.

[ThomasMore]

I agree about a city wide facility. Should be a local choice...which locals pay for in hopes of a ROI.

“When waste is processed in an anaerobic digester, most of the carbon in the waste is intentionally converted to methane, and then the methane is burned as a form of renewable energy. The emissions are carbon neutral and the energy generated offsets fossil carbon use. As with compost, the remaining fiber that is left after digestion can still be used for soil improvement or other uses.

Anaerobic digesters require a substantial, initial capital investment and are non-trivial to operate, but they are clearly the best way to deal with most organic waste streams. They also pay for themselves over time. Modern municipal water treatment facilities tend to have these digesters as do some large-scale dairies and CAFOs (confined animal feed operations).

The largest onion processor in California (Gills Onions) installed a digester for its substantial stream of trimmings. Gills eliminated a troublesome odor and disposal issue, they now offset much of their energy demand, and they are ahead financially after paying back the initial investment. This is a great example of how “doing the right thing” from a greenhouse gas perspective can also be a sound, bottom-line option.”

whole article here...

http://appliedmythology.blogspot.com/2013/01/the-shocking-carbon-footprint-of-compost.html

[2nd Amendment]

My daughter lives in Seattle. She already knows people who have been fined $30 for having organic matter in their trash. She has already bought a composting bucket that you can leave in your kitchen.. It can serve as a porta-potty if the sewer fails.

[Twotone]

I have two sisters in the Seattle area. They LIKE their nanny state, amazing (& sad) as that is to the rest of us.

[Political Junkie Too]

Just cut right to the chase.

YOU are the toxin!

-PJ

[sport]

Some people are born to be slaves.

[jonno]

If not exactly what do they expect you to do with such waste? Flush down the toilet and clog up the pipes?

To give due consideration to the "law of unintended consequences" is an exercise more often than not left out of social engineering projects.

[SoothingDave]

[windcliff]

I’d empty the sand box just before taking the trash out.

[rktman]

Condolences for their lost minds. :>}

[Red Badger]

I know where Seattle is headed...............

[Red Badger]

In NYC Garbage disposals are not allowed in some high rises. Coming soon to Seattle................

[goodnesswins]

UM....Seattle is NOT across the river from Portland....you need a map

[bert]

If you live twenty stories up, the best way to dispose of food wastes in Seattle is to chuck them out the window

There is nothing wrong with Seattle that can’t be solved by a pyroclastic flow

[Red Badger]

If you live twenty stories up, the best way to dispose of food wastes in Seattle is to chuck them out the window

Medieval solution to a modern problem?.............

[HiTech RedNeck]

gardy-looooooooo!

[SWAMPSNIPER]

Time to buy garbage disposers, or have they outlawed those too?