Coming Up! Public “Managing Food Waste Stakeholder Group” on addressing contamination issues and the role of depackagers

Have you heard of the recent catastrophe of fish dying in a river on the German Polish border? 

Or that rainwater is not safe to drink due to PFAS?  

Or that PFAS is leaching into groundwater around the Coventry VT landfill?

Microplastics should not get into the environment, but do. 

The Universal Recycling Law was meant to "close the nutrient loop" by separating food residuals from trash and recycling, and allowing for the best and highest use of this valuable resource - including their agricultural use. But currently, waste streams are being consolidated through Casella’s zero-sort type services and sent to their depackaging facility in Williston VT. There, the commingled materials get crushed and grinded in a machine, mixed with water to become a pumpable “slurry” and afterwards get sent to digesters, after which they are land-applied. 

Even though science is behind on risk and harm assessments, this practice likely creates environmental harm through soil and water contamination as well as risks for human health. We call on Vermont to apply a precautionary approach. We call on Vermont to avoid these environmental and human health risks as much as possible through whatever means necessary, including regulation, while maintaining the Universal Recycling Law’s mandates.

Rural Vermont is a proud member of the Protect Our Soils Coalition, which successfully advocated for the passage of Act 170, that includes a stakeholder process to develop recommendations by January 2023 on how to regulate depackaging technology.

Now is time to protect the integrity of the URL in Vermont!

HERE’S WHAT YOU CAN DO:

Put this date on your calendar! The first "Food Waste Stakeholder Group" public meeting will be on Wednesday August 31st from 1-2:30pm.

Tom Gilbert (Black Dirt Farm, also representing the Poultry Farmers for Compost Foraging) will be part of the Managing Food Waste Stakeholder Group launching on August 31st 1pm - 2.30pm to find recommendations for the management of food waste and to address contamination issues with microplastics (including PFAS) as well as the role of depackaging technology. See the full list of those involved here.

TAKE ACTION:

(1) Show up in person, virtually or calling in to demonstrate that this matters to you! *

(2) Prepare and provide a one minute public comment on why this concerns you!

(3) Submit your talking points or written comment if you can't make the meeting or choose not to speak at it. Email comments to Ben Gauthier.

Express your concerns regarding the consolidation of waste streams of food residuals and the associated contamination risks for agricultural soils, human health and the environment more broadly. Hold the Agency of Natural Resources accountable for a more strict implementation of the source separation requirement and voice your support for community-scale solutions for the management of food scraps-- such as the innovative agriculture practice called compost foraging, where chickens graze on the compost piles, generate valuable soil amendments, and farmers save the #1 expense in poultry farming: the feed.

* How to Register and/or Join the Stakeholder Meeting:

  • In person at the National Life campus, Davis Building, Catamount Room (1 National Life Dr, Montpelier, VT 05604). Please register via email and contact Mia Roethlein at mia.roethlein@vermont.gov

  • The online Microsoft Teams meeting here | Meeting ID: 243 876 622 951 and Passcode: 5iiCWU

  • Or call in (audio only) | +1 802-828-7667,,656507214#   United States, Montpelier and Phone Conference ID: 656 507 214#

BACKGROUND:

The Agency of Natural Resources allowed for the utilization of depackaging technology in Vermont for the management of food residuals without requiring their separation from their packaging at the point of generation. Over the last couple of years, this has led to a consolidation of food waste streams, making it harder for small farms to engage in community-scale composting of food residuals that have been separated from trash and recycling by generators for the diversion within their local communities.

For more information: 

Mollie Wills