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Posted on 01/28/2015 10:12:24 AM PST by 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?
‘The People’s Republik of Madistan’ INSISTS that real cork wine stoppers be recycled. I wonder how many of the ‘White Wine and Brie Crowd’ around the State Capitol Square actually DO this?
http://www.cityofmadison.com/streets/recycling/cork.cfm
Perfect, LOL!
We iz in ur trash bags, moitoring u for fud.
(Insert appropriate cat picture here)
Nanny State PING!
I threw out some stale peanuts this morning.
Should I hang myself?
.
I think that a mere flogging will suffice.
On the other hand, throwing out perfectly good beer, for instance, would earn you a firing squad, working their way slowly up from your ankles.
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It said in the article: (give the city) ...food waste in a separate receptacle, then next year buy it back for your (non existent apartment) garden.
IOW, it is a scheme for you to pay them to haul it away, so they can sell it; and fine you if you don’t cooperate.
Has nothing to do with ‘greenhouse gasses’ or ‘reducing food waste.’
Thanks for the ping!
So composting it won't produce methane?
LOL. Now that’s funny.
Thanks for your reply; glad you got a chuckle out of it !
Those neighborhood areas with enough sane residents should make it a point of honor for ALL of their trash containers to earn the scarlet tag. Then they can ridicule and shame their neighbors who don't have one.
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