Curb sort requires collection workers to sort through bins and place them in compartments for each material on the truck. Once you have an incinerator, you need to feed it, Subra said about the forces that keep them running. Whatever the severity of pollution caused by residential plastics nationwide, environmentalists say the plastics industry has spent millions of ad dollars to place the burden of recycling on the public. If implemented, this will be the first Zero Waste plan for "Fair Development" crafted by and for grassroots communities in the U.S. Like broader national . Baltimore Organizer. - 4 - 5.6 Collaborate across agencies on business and market development 2014 - 2020 5.7 Incentivize adoption of new programs by local governments 2014 - 2020 Objective 6 - Recover Energy from Waste 6.1 Assess and compare environmental impacts of disposal technologies Underway 6.2 Encourage anaerobic digestion 2014 - 2020 6.3 Support gasification and other clean energy technologies . The City administration is calling for the immediate setting and implementation of Zero Waste goals and local facilities. Lets be frank Hopkins has yet to commit to the radical environmental action necessary to combat climate change, air pollution and toxicity. Let Waste Dive's free newsletter keep you informed, straight from your inbox. Sign Up for Composting and Zero Waste News, Government Support for Community Composting Part 3, Webinar: Government Support for Community Composti, waste - recycling based economic development. The lesson carries over to recycling education for youth. Other proposals under consideration include expanding services to multi-family buildings that currently dont have access to recycling and requiring privately owned properties to provide recycling services. The Zero Waste Hierarchy Camp Small transforms yard debris into compost for city projects and processes fallen trees into lumber for the regions wood working sector. BSW provided French interpretation at the 3/27/23 public meeting and Spanish interpretation at the 4/10/23 and 4/24/23 public meetings. Spains FCC agrees to sell 25% of its environmental subsidiary for $1B. There's also a clear environmental benefit: 633,000 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions are eliminated in the transition to zero waste, according to the plan. Confusion over what is and isnt recyclable often leads to these items being mixed together in residential collections, requiring sophisticated sorting at recycling centers. The commercial food waste diversion goal was pulled from the Baltimore Food Waste and Recovery Strategy. It is hypocritical for a public health institution like Hopkins to ignore the effects of waste incineration in its own backyard. We need to take this call seriously. Will Hopkins join Baltimores zero-waste movement? The plan provides a step by step guide to transitioning the city away from incineration and toward recycling, composting and reuse, which will expand the economy by 1,800 jobs within two years. While such commission efforts have proven successful elsewhere, the SBCLT, their Zero Waste allies and some in positions of city government are calling for the creation of a unique, ad hoc Zero Waste committee in agreement on fair development principles driving Zero Waste infrastructure centered in South Baltimore. Baltimore City Department of Public Works, 2013-2023 Solid Waste Management Plan (PDF), Baltimore City Community Relations Commission, 10-Year Solid Waste Management Plan | Baltimore City Department of Public Works, Baltimore City Residents Invited to First of Five Public Meetings to Gather Feedback on Development of 10-Year Solid Waste Management Plan | Baltimore City Department of Public Works, Stakeholders Invited to Provide Comment on the 90% Solid Waste Management Plan (SWMP) | Baltimore City Department of Public Works, Stakeholders Invited to Third Public Meeting to Develop DPW Solid Waste Management Plan | Baltimore City Department of Public Works, 10-Year Solid Waste Management Plan Final Draft Presentation atApril 10 Public Meeting | Baltimore City Department of Public Works, Residents Encouraged to Attend Final Public Meeting to Weigh in on the Citys 10-Year Solid Waste Management Plan | Baltimore City Department of Public Works, Sanitary Sewer Consent Decree Program (Basement Backup), Currently Advertised Construction Projects, Prequalification for City of Baltimore (OBC), May 8, 2023: Plan was submitted to the Maryland Department of Environment, May 15, 2023: Webpage update: Final Draft uploaded, and planning process overview added, May 15, 2023: Comments uploaded, and comment responses added on the, August 2023- MDE will provide their comments and edits, November-December 2023- Plan will be submitted to the Mayor & City Council for adoption, Completed with feedback from 60% considered, Plan and supporting documents completed, with feedback from 90% draft considered, Plan completed with feedback from 99% draft considered. Reuse and repair are being further expanded under new state Right to Repair Laws. The University is a major polluter in the city, producing thousands of tons of waste each year. and Baltimore City to recycle 15% (populations under 150,000) or 20% (populations over . ILSR has been working with many agencies and organizations in Baltimore for the past decade, including close partnerships with United Workers, the Baltimore Office of Sustainability, the Baltimore Compost Collective and Filbert Street Garden, located in Curtis Bay. In exchange, Baltimore will continue sending waste there through 2031 and pay an estimated $106 million under the new contract. Highlighting the importance of locally based composting solutions as a first priority over large-scale regional solutions. We rely on donations from readers like you to keep going. Local communities argue incineration is an environmental justice issue, particularly Wheelabrator Baltimore, which has been singled outas one of the city's worst air polluters and is located near low-income communities of color. Specifically, the SBCLT youth leaders placed focus on local compost solutions to reduce the quantity of organics entering the waste stream. Under the city's Clean Air Act, passed in February 2019, local incinerators must monitor 20 different pollutants under strict standards and report that data online, with additional pollutants joining the list in 2022. Their racially and economically just Zero Waste Plan goes beyond the successful management of resources and waste by lifting up human rights values and ensuring that those communities who are historically burdened by the ill effects of our waste system are made a priority. Enck said plastics corporations are fully aware most materials wont be recycled. An enthusiastic audience made up of hundreds of community, health, and environmental activists from across the city attended the launch event, along with five members of the Baltimore City Council: Council President Brandon Scott, Vice President Sharon Middleton, and members Ed Reisinger, Mary Pat Clarke, Kristerfer Burnett and Shannon Sneed. The data and materials management analysis in the report were prepared by Zero Waste Associates and the Institute for Local Self-Reliance. The Wheelabrator Baltimore trash incinerator near Russell Street and Interstate 95. We support this plan. Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The News-Letter. When towns and cities fail to recycle, plastics can end up in landfills, where they might take a decade or even centuries to fully break down, all the while risking contaminating groundwater. Three strategically located plants in Baltimore, all shipping directly to end use markets will allow recycling trucks to tip their loads quickly and get back on route efficiently and more cost effectively. The report from the Tishman Environment and Design Center found that about 40 percent of incinerators are located in census tracts where both the percentage of people of color and the percentage of those living below the federal poverty line is above 25 percent. We see momentum growing for big change in Baltimore, said Meleny Thomas, a community organizer with United Workers in South Baltimore. Steph Compton. Get the free daily newsletter read by industry experts. Collection costs are increased because of labor time needed to complete routes. The Second Chance non-profit recycles people as well as building materials. The most ever. Humanim had a zero-recidivism rate for over three years in its deconstruction-training program. Those bags very commonly, though, jam the gears of the equipment, you know, bringing the whole operation to a halt.. Inside Climate News uses cookies. Despite this, Baltimore lacks any local permitted composting infrastructure. Study recycling and you will never be unemployed. Policy Library Both companies sued last spring to stop it, along with t, he Energy Recovery Council, the National Waste & Recycling Association, and TMS Hauling. A much more proactive approach is needed as Baltimores recycling rate has hovered between 15-24 percent over the last decade while the 10-year Solid Waste Management Plan omits any goals to increase composting. Titled, "A New Commission, With No Goal of Scrapping the Incinerator, Won't Get Baltimore to Zero Waste," the article was published on November 22. Our fuel, municipal solid waste, is truly renewable, being generated every day., In terms of air pollution, Urban said the largest source in Baltimore is vehicular traffic, and shutting down Wheelabrator would add upward of 36,000 tractor trailer trips to local roads each year to methane-producing landfills.. Provided interpretation at Public Review Meetings for individuals who indicated a need in their registration. The Baltimore County Council approved the 2023 Basic Services Maps, with amendments. The University, simply put, must take responsibility for its pollution now; we cannot wait the years it will take to finalize the Sustainability Plan. Today, there are more than 70 incinerators operating in 21 statesconcentrated mostly on the east coast, where room for landfills is scarce. Neil Seldman, Ph.D, directs the Waste to Wealth Initiative. Dan Gearinos habit-forming weekly take on how to understand the energy transformation reshaping our world. Dual stream collection can be as cost effective as single stream collection too. At least initially, though, the groups focus is on eliminating the destination for most of the citys waste the Wheelabrator Baltimore trash incinerator near Russell Street and Interstate 95. The city collects mixed recyclables and ships them 20 miles out of town for processing by Waste Management in Elkridge, MD. The know how, technology and business opportunities are available for rapid transformation- from a run of the mill urban recycling program, with little impact on Baltimore city, into a new system with vibrant job and local wealth production through the added value of raw materials and used items. Only those pieces labeled with the numbers 1 or 2 can be recycled, and sometimes 5 depending on the location. Repair and reuse are the highest forms of recycling as they keep already made products in circulation, says Dan Knapp, owner of Urban Ore, Inc., a materials recycling company in Berkeley, CA. The Global Alliance report also found that nearly half of Baltimores residential plastic was disposed of in its landfill, while the remaining 47 percent was burned at Wheelabrator. They reduced waste volume by up to 95 percent, leaving more space in landfills, and they produced energy, using steam boilers to generate electricity, about 0.4 percent of the nations total. In addition, with local processing, about 25 direct jobs would be created at one such facility in Baltimore. In our webinar series, we explore a variety of topics relevant to community composters, from climate to hauling permits. In the first phase, the state looks to spend . Ironically, several years ago Baltimore did make a highly profitable investment in composting. Only about one-third of Baltimores residential plastic waste, whether mixed with trash or placed separately into household recycling bins, has potential buyers. Zero waste is an aspiration avowed by numerous cities around the country, although specific definitions of what zero waste means vary. Same with Community Fork Lift in Hyattsville, MD where profits grew 34% in 2021. The recycling rate for the city hovers at 24%. Community Composting Webinars Thank you for supporting our journalism. Community Outreach: BSW distributed flyers and information in the community and to community groups, including: needs were logged during the registration process, information about physical accessibility was distributed prior to the events, alternative slide decks for low vision for in person meetings, printed copies of SWMP upon request for low-computer access individuals, Konveio (a platform that allows you to add comments directly on the draft). Those include contracts that require municipalities to supply incinerators with guaranteed amounts of garbage, which can discourage the pursuit of alternative solutions for waste disposal. "[The incinerator]could be closed as early as September of this year," he explained, noting the timeframe has crept up on the city's Department of Public Works (DPW), which has faced criticism from some activists for not planning more swiftly. The wave action acts like a paper cutter, Enck said. Today, just about anything made of plasticwhich is typically produced from natural gas and other fossil fuelshas a number displayed on it with chasing arrows circling it. Plastic is lightweight and durable, and has considerable environmental benefits compared to competing materials, especially pertaining to carbon emissions and climate change., Enck said: A more accurate PR campaign would be: Dont litter plastic. She also noted that its low recycling rate is why some states have banned plastic grocery bags. Learn more about efforts communities are taking across the world to transition to Zero Waste and apply those lessons to our local work here in Baltimore. Shashawnda Campbell, Destiny Watford and other Benjamin Franklin High School youth environmental justice leaders successfully organized against a planned 4,000 ton per day garbage incinerator project in their South Baltimore communityin 2016. the development of a Zero Waste plan for Baltimore that will advance sustainability, public health, and job creation." The resolution was adopt ed in June 2017. Collaborated with the Mayors Office of Immigrant Affairs to distribute marketing materials (via social media and newsletter) translated into Baltimore Citys top five languages: Spanish, Arabic, Mandarin, Korean and French. Under then City Council President Scotts leadership, Baltimore City Council passed a resolution in the Spring of 2020 calling on the Mayor, Board of Estimates and relevant City agencies to formally acknowledge and move forward in implementing the Fair Development for Zero Waste, Though the city has yet to fully engage with the plan since, Mayor Scott and city leadership can still take advantage of this unique opportunity to join communities, organizations and institutions, working in alignment with a variety of companies to design and advance assorted Zero Waste initiatives. According to a report from the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, a Washington, D.C.-based research and advocacy organization, three to five times more energy can be saved through waste prevention, reuse, recycling and composting than by burning trash. This means the end of wishcycling placing something in the recycle bin that you want to be recycled and a drastic reduction in contamination. The process is sloppy. Our map provides an interactive illustration of how communities pursue locally based composting capacity and enterprises. Non-recyclable items are left in the bin for the households to see what is not recyclable. Composting for Community Map Even better, more jobs are available with a few tweaks to the current recycling system using updated technologies. Baltimore pays over $400,000 per year in membership . And if you dont litter it, you should just know that its going to be buried or burned at an incinerator or a landfill.. If it werent for the student activists of Free Your Voice at Benjamin Franklin High School in South Baltimore, city residents would be suffering from two massive trash incinerators, not just one. Learn how composting protects the soil and climate while creating jobs in our series of posters. In a part of the country famous for its agriculture and cultural identity, climate-driven swings between extreme precipitation and deep drought threaten historic architecture, ancient art and beloved foods. The Baltimore incinerator causes $55 million annually in health problems. Austin then changed the name of its Department of Public Works to the Department of Resource Recovery; prepared a Zero Waste Business Plan and commissioned the construction of a Resource Recovery Park for composting, recycling or reuse companies. "Given our commitment to this important issue, we find it curious that anyone pursuing a goal of zero waste would perceive us as an adversary rather than an ally," she said. The national recycling average is nearly 35 percent while the Maryland Recycling Act mandates a recycling rate of at least 35 percent. Speakers made it clear that this strategy would be viable only with the support of major institutions like ours. There are at least 12 confirmed sites in Baltimores Community Composting Network with hundreds of additional sites across the city that compost, according to Clean Air Baltimoreorganizer and researcher Steph Compton. Well, Im not surprised because plastics recycling has been an abysmal failure despite the millions of dollars spent by the plastics industry trying to get the public to believe that you can actually recycle plastics, said Judith Enck, a former regional administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency and the president of Beyond Plastics, an organization that seeks to end plastics pollution. Of all of the plastic material ever produced, only 9 percent has ever been recycled, 12 percent has been incinerated, and the remaining 79 percent has been landfilled or ended up in our oceans and the environment, the report said. In our webinar series, we explore a variety of topics relevant to community composters, from climate to hauling permits. But Baltimore itself has not yet fully adjusted to these new opportunities, and as a result is paying a high opportunity cost for continued investment in an at best mediocre resource management system. Resale operations across the US are reporting enormous growth in sales since the pandemic started. All Rights Reserved. He specializes in helping cities and businesses recover increasing amounts of materials from the waste stream and add value to the local economy through new processing and manufacturing facilities. Baltimore Colleges and Universities for a Sustainable Environment, The Bohs: A group of rock-loving students thrive within an otherwise quiet Hopkins band scene, Thoughts of Kehlani in the Rec Center wont keep me up at night, Bard appointed inaugural chief of the Johns Hopkins Police Department. While the city works on its own solid waste master plan, groups including the Institute for Local Self-Reliance and a coalition called the Fair Development Roundtable hired Liss, who has worked with two dozen other localities across the country on zero-waste plans, to develop one for Baltimore. The SBCLT has been able to meet residents where they are and engage on relevant levels of Zero Waste infrastructure. As workers and residents near South Baltimores various industrial facilities continue to incur toxic exposures to assorted environmental hazards, SBCLT and their partners remain committed to creating healthier, safer options for impacted employees through a just transition for workers. Posters: Compost Impacts More Than You Think Given our commitment to this important issue, we find it curious that anyone pursuing a goal of zero waste would perceive us as an adversary rather than an ally," she said. Posters: Compost Impacts More Than You Think I wish we could close Wheelabrator tomorrow, councilman Ed Reisinger told a crowded auditorium at the University of Maryland School of Social Work on Saturday. But Scotts predecessor helped extend its contract for another 10 years on his way out of office. There were also waste management options the Department of Public Works rejected, such as mandatory recycling and dual or multi-stream recycling, which would require providing separate collection containers for different types of materials. Even during the post China import ban debacle, communities that had good dual stream systems continued to sell to markets for paper, glass, plastic and metal. The report, by the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives, a coalition of 800 groups and individuals who advocate for zero waste, found that Baltimores plastic recycling rate was the lowest of the five cities surveyed, which included Minneapolis, Minnesota; Long Beach, California; Newark, New Jersey; and Detroit, Michigan. In Baltimore County, officials recently acknowledged it hasnt recycled glass materials since 2013 because of logistical and financial concerns. Copyright 2023 City of Baltimore Amendments to the 10- year Solid Waste Management Plan for Baltimore City are being heard for approval by the Board of Estimates on Wednesday, June 1, 2022. The report used 2017 data for Baltimore, but researcher Alex Danovitch said he believes the estimates are a fair representation of where the city is at today.. He is a co-founder of the Institute for Local Self-Reliance. Toby has a Masters in Environmental Health & Engineering at the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health. Baltimore is poised for dual stream recycling now after the Recycling Partnership paid for new carts for each household in the city. The following article makes suggestions for transforming Baltimores current recycling system, developing an equitable local compost sector, expanding re-use businesses, and advancing general infrastructure development. Annual spending of $20 million in bonds to fund deconstruction rather than demolition of 1,500 homes a year. The problem is likely to grow far worse: According to a 2016 report from the World Economic Forum, the amount of plastic produced globally was predicted to double within 20 years and nearly quadruple by 2050. Implement the bridge strategy in the Fair Development Plan for Zero Waste endorsed by the City Council. Toby Harris is a Baltimore based researcher with ILSRs Waste to Wealth Initiative. The plan also called for state government to achieve a. This Authority was created by state law and serves as a consulting body on solid waste issues. The Fair Development Plan reflects the informed opinion of community members in frontline, environmental justice and community development organizations. Wheelabrator Baltimore trash incinerator near Russell Street and Interstate 95, suing the city to stop the clean air ordinance, largely because of poor recycling habits by Americans, hasnt recycled glass materials since 2013, Orioles top Giants, 3-2, as Gunnar Hendersons homer makes winner of Dean Kremer, College baseball roundup: Maryland wins NCAA regional opener; Johns Hopkins advances in College World Series, Baltimore mayor, City Council leaders vow to seek alternative after BOPA budget hearing disappoints, Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information. Amendments to the 10- year Solid Waste Management Plan for Baltimore City are being heard for approval by the Board of Estimates on Wednesday, June 1, 2022. She indicated the company expects to be needed for the foreseeable future in Baltimore as the city grapples with its waste. In an email to the Hopkins community in November, President Ronald J. Daniels announced a new Sustainability Plan meant to articulate our collective vision for a healthy, equitable, and sustainable future. In the Dec. 2 Sustainability Plan Town Hall, Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs Sunil Kumar declared, We need to discipline ourselves as a large organization and a key local partner with our community and the neighborhoods around us to act in a way that lives out what we tell our students and the rest of the world.. By Bob Berwyn, Photography by Michele Lapini. The United Workers Fair Development Plan is a Zero Waste Plan based on community goals and aspirations. She is writing her dissertation on the ecological food movement in Turkey. Now, Scotts administration is trying to steer plastic and other trash away from it and the citys Quarantine Road Landfill. In 2021, the Zero Waste Plan was adopted by the City Council, championed by Baltimore's new Mayor Brandon Scott. The hardest decision in recycling Neil Seldman has learned is making the first initial decision to recycle; once made, common sense and entrepreneurialism takeover. Baltimore is now primed to take the same steps, as did Austin and many other cities. We deliver climate news to your inbox like nobody else. Those requirements have targeted Wheelabrator Baltimore and the Curtis Bay Baltimore Regional Medical Waste incinerator, whose operators say the law will force them to shut down. The city has adopted a plan to supply around 200,000 recycling carts to Baltimoreans, beginning at the end of September. Industry representatives describe them as vital components of Americas waste disposal infrastructure and argue that, were they to be shut down, landfills would overflow. Formerly marginalized community members are now engaged, empowered productive taxpayers and residents. Sign Up for Composting and Zero Waste News, The Institute for Local Self-Reliance worked with. But moving away from what the plan's supporters call "Big Waste" might prove challenging in the near-term. Baltimore based non-profit Humanim pioneered training for hundreds of workers through deconstructing abandoned buildings under contract with the City. Pulitzer Prize-winning, nonpartisan reporting on the biggest crisis facing our planet. Theyre telling us we dont care about our communities, Campbell said. . Reusing building materials reduces the cost of hushing, while individuals acquire new skills. Its not just about trash, he said. Plastics are particularly disastrous for waterwaysthey clog rivers around the globe, particularly in the developing world, where they leach harmful chemicals. A key feature of a proposed Zero Waste Recovery Park in South Baltimore would include infrastructure for educational programs, including compost demonstrations, reuse yards or remanufacturing amongst other options. In some parts of the country, that has turned profitable recycling programs into new expenditures for local governments. . Baltimore has its own landfill, Quarantine Road, but it is unclear if or when waste displaced from Wheelabrator might be accepted there. The city DOES have it's own plan, called the Less Waste Better Baltimore plan, developed by consultants at GeoSyntec. The plan suggests that Baltimore's zero-waste plan could create 1,800 green jobs in the recycling and composting industries. ILSR worked on the Baltimore Fair Development Zero Waste Plan and was advisor to City Council members, community and business leaders in Austin, TX that led to the citys Zero Waste program. This lack of action directly contributes to the disproportionate harm that Black and low-income populations in Baltimore experience. Ashley Esposito, Violetville Board Member and Zero Waste community leader, further shared the groups aims to develop a community engagement campaign specifically educating neighbors who know nothing about composting or Zero Waste, sharing resources that currently exist in the city while developing a media campaign with easily digestible information and graphics.. Recycling rates for plastic film typically range in the single digits. This article is available exclusively for our subscribers, who help fund our work at The Baltimore Sun. Such a shared savings program could pay composters $50-$100 per ton based on the actual cost savings to the city for collection and disposal. Follow the ILSR on Twitter andFacebook and, for monthly updates on our work,sign-up for our ILSR general newsletter. Seldman of ILSR said there would likely be a two to three-year period during which Baltimore might need a potentially out-of-town landfill. Incinerators, or waste-to-energy facilitiesthe term preferred by the industrytook off in the 1980s and were touted as an evolution in waste management. All three authors are part of the 2021-22 Sustainable Design Practicum's year-long collaboration with the SBCLT and members of the new PLAN chapter at Hopkins. Wheelabrator, which began operating in 1985, is the citys single largest standing source of air pollution. But if mixed plastics cant be sorted, the entire batch is contaminated, meaning its non-recyclable. Neil Seldman, Directs the Waste to Wealth Initiative (WtW) at ILSR. The Baltimore Compost Collectivefurther serves households and businesses across the region and in South Baltimore. Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives, Vecinos de La Villita temen que empeore la contaminacin ambiental por los planes de ampliacin de la autopista I-55. Youth Zero Waste outreach specialist and social enterprise leaders Carlos Sanchez, Taysia Thompson, and Terriq Thompson developed a presentation with other community partners in SBCLTs citywide Zero Waste outreach coalition. City recycling jobs are unionized and a strong need exists for more of these good, healthy, safe family sustaining positions. The new generation of curb sort trucks can collect source separated organic materials from households for composting and/or digestion, too. Opponents of the current system say a switch to localized recycling run by the government and "mission-based" recyclers would reduce cost and benefit the community. Theyre so expensive to initiate and to upgrade that they keep having to take more and more waste to meet the economic demands, said Wilma Subra, a chemist and environmental scientist who assists communities with environmental battles. And with Baltimore locked into burning plastics and other waste through 2031, Mayor Scotts administration is looking over recommendations from the citys Department of Public Works to increase recycling. The SWMP planning effort consisted of 4 stages for the 60%, 90%, 99%, and Final Drafts. As the largest employer in Baltimore and the leading public health academic institution, it is the University's responsibility to ensure a sustainable, equitable future for all. With billions in climate cash flowing, companies that burn trash race to rebrand. Need Housing? Mary Urban, external communications and outreach manager for Wheelabrator, said the Tier 1 designation is appropriate. These clean stream materials go to the front of the line for marketing materials. Aside from Department of Public Works recommendations, Baltimore is scheduled to start a plastic bag ban on Oct. 1. Plastics are portrayed as environmentally viable because plastics are environmentally viable, said a Plastics Industry Association spokesperson. Plastic was first invented during the mid-19th Century in an attempt to find a substitute for the ivory needed to make balls for the wildly popular game of billiards. Proponents of the Baltimore plan said the aim is to help the planet, but also communities that are eager for investment and cleanup. Baltimore's Fair Development Plan for Zero Waste, created through a collaboration between Baltimore City grassroots community leaders, Zero Waste Associates and Baltimore City Officials was launched in February 2020 and adopted by Baltimore City Council in March 2020. It has now been referred to six different city agencies and offices. Neighborhood Soil Rebuilders Composter Training Program The plan provides a step by step guide to transitioning the city away from incineration and toward recycling, composting and reuse, which will expand the economy by 1,800 jobs within two years. Wheelabrator officials have also said that burning trash at the facility is better for the environment than trucking it to landfills, which produce large amounts of methane, a greenhouse gas more potent at trapping heat than carbon dioxide. Plan development was informed by population changes and estimates, historical solid waste data, tonnage reports, regulatory guidelines, city planning documents and public input. With City administration calling for Zero Waste now, a commitment to a co-equal joint development process advancing recycling, compost, re-use organizations and overarching local Zero Waste infrastructure is needed to end the regions long reliance on environmentally unjust landfills and incinerators. The city recently agreed to stay implementation of the law as litigation continues. Nov 4, 2020 Updated Nov 4, 2020, 2:08pm EST A panel of Baltimore's top officials voted 3-2 Wednesday morning to reject public protests and approve a 10-year contract extension with the operator. The company has not installed proper equipment despite the demand for recycled glass by diverse industries: 100,000 tons of recycled glass is equivalent to 2,000 industrial jobs in bottle and insulation manufacturing, construction and abrasives industries. Both companies sued last spring to stop it, along with the Energy Recovery Council, the National Waste & Recycling Association, and TMS Hauling. ILSR has been supporting grass roots, youth led community organizations in Baltimore fending off new incinerators while implementing urgent Zero Waste measures, transitioning the City from the aged, polluting incinerator in Downtown, Southwest Baltimore. And, reuse and repair efforts pay sales tax. A Zero Waste Critique of Planning Efforts in Baltimore County, Maryland by Neil Seldman | Date: 26 Jan 2022 | Diane Wittner is a longtime resident of Maryland's Baltimore County, and is principal of Echotopia LLC. Our #1 newsletter delivers the weeks climate and energy news our original stories and top headlines from around the web. (Ash from the incinerator also ends up in the landfill). These Zero Waste practices would further help the city and assorted communities across the region address other pressing challenges and opportunities; including the need for more good jobs, reduced recidivism, elimination of the digital divide, and creation of new small businesses, community-based composting and food production in addition to environmental education. Hopkins students and faculty joined Baltimores zero-waste campaign in a public action at City Hall on October 22. In a settlement with the city of Baltimore, Wheelabrator agreed to install nearly $40 million in emissions upgrades. Rather, the company utilizes glass for its own purposes as a landfill cover. The zero waste plan, developed by consultant Gary Liss, principal of Zero Waste Associates, stems from a non-binding resolution the city passed in 2017 to explore a zero waste strategy. Or will it perpetuate environmental injustice by making more empty promises? The zero waste plan, developed by consultant Gary Liss, principal of Zero Waste Associates, stems from a non-binding resolution the city passed in 2017 to explore a zero waste. Thats not true.. We demand that Hopkins commit to sustainable waste infrastructure by pledging a minimum tonnage of waste to the local composting facility envisioned by the community-led, zero-waste movement in the city. He earned a masters degree in investigative journalism from the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism at ASU in 2020. All of the above-named activities increase recycling and reuse, while adding value to the citys materials and further developing skills for residents. Baltimore desires and deserves a zero-waste future. "When future generations ask us what we did to reverse global climate change, it is Baltimore's Fair Development Plan for Zero Waste that we will point to," said Council Member Mary Pat Clarke. . Networks of curb swaps, repair cafes, community tool libraries or tool lending programs and varied fix it days or build events are further emerging. Town halls and bureaucratic committees alone wont do anything to mitigate environmental harm. Mission-based recycling, which includes outreach to residents to reduce contamination by food, plastic film and other materials in recycling, and local sale of recyclable materials to be used in communities in need. Baltimore is far below what the best recycling cities are doing across the United States, approaching or beyond 75 percent, in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Oceanside, CA, Bethlehem, NY, Seattle, WA, and Portland, OR. For instance, the Village of Violetville Association was supported in their neighborhoods desire to set up a community compost drop off center serviced by regional private haulers. Dive Brief: Several members of Baltimore's city council are expected to throw their weight behind a "zero waste" plan on Monday with a new resolution, part of a growing push to end incineration in the city. The "zero-waste" goal actually called for diverting 85 percent of the trash now going to landfills to other means of disposal by 2040. Although the Food Matters Program funded by the Natural Resources Defenses Council and the lack of local compost infrastructure are highlighted in the 10 year Solid Waste Management Plan, no specific goals to evaluate sites for a compost facility alone or in partnerships with private operators are included. They're heavily invested in waste incineration and aggressively push plans to burn trash, even though trash incineration is the most expensive and polluting way to manage waste (or to make energy). I believe that if [incineration is] done properly, and I believe Wheelabrator does it properly, environmentally, that its not the harm to the environment that advocates think it is, said Chris Skaggs, former executive director of the Northeast Maryland Waste Disposal Authority. Leaders with The South Baltimore Community Land Trust (SBCLT) sustained ongoing regional outreach, organizational and advocacy efforts, publishing Baltimores Fair Development Plan for Zero Waste in February 2020 with the Institute for Local Self Reliance and Zero Waste Associates. The cost of processing dual stream materials is one-third the cost of single stream processing; yet another source of savings for the city. Recycling is at the cross roads of essential services and depurate need. The National Zero Waste Conference is a two day educational and networking event organized by the National Recycling Coalition. Creating a $1 vacant lot program, allowing nonprofits and community groups to take over land often treated as dumping sites and instead use it beneficially for communities. The private sector wants to partner. Many city residents now consider incineration an unacceptable strategy for the citys present and future. The project was funded by the citys financial agency and has paid off in hundreds of thousands of dollars in savings while also producing revenue. The US recycling system changed dramatically in 2018 when China banned imports of recycled materials from the United States, as loads regularly contained contaminated rates as high as 40 percent. 3/9/2020: Baltimore's Fair Development Plan for Zero Waste: 2020-2040 and Beyond 20-0202R: Resolution Text | Info. All feedback was thoughtfully reviewed, compiled, and analyzed for common themes and priorities to include in the plan. The Compost for Community Initiative with The Institute for Local Self- Reliance developed the Hierarchy to Reduce Waste and Grow Community, emphasizing local small-scale composting as a preferred option when compared to larger scale, regional compost solutions. MRFs are small scale (50-150 tons per day), recycling processing plants cost less to build and operate than sending materials to a large 1,000 ton per day processing plant. Baltimore Councilmember Mary Pat Clarke introduced a resolution last week, titled "Improving Development of a Baltimore City Recycling and Solid Waste Management Master Plan," which calls on the Northeast Maryland Waste Disposal Authority to reissue a request for proposals (RFP) that better aligns with the city's commitment to zero waste policies. BSW contracted with Geosyntec Consultants to write the plan, and incorporate feedback from stakeholders in accordance with the regulations set by MDE and with Gavin to support media outreach, comment tracking, and meeting facilitation. Coupled with appropriate community engagement and education measures, no better educational medium exists. UPDATE: March 10, 2020: Eleven Baltimore City Council members sponsored a resolutionon Monday calling for the city to "formally acknowledge and move forward in implementing" the "Fair Development Plan for Zero Waste" authored by several non-profit organizations. Maryland considers trash burning as the highest form of renewable energyTier 1 in its renewable energy portfolio standardalongside wind and solar power. Baltimore Zero Waste Plan A Just Transition to an Equitable Future Stakeholder Process Plan developed by community Guided by United Workers Helped by Baltimore Office of Sustainability Zero Waste Associates & Institute for Local Self -Reliance What We Heard: Urgency & Equity Absolutely! Instead of sending construction waste to landfills, the plan proposes salvaging bricks, doors, windows and lumber. Every day or once a week, our original stories and digest of the webs top headlines deliver the full story, for free. A bill that mandates the deconstruction of buildings in the city, proposed by City Council Member Odette Ramos, would increase the number of jobs at one deconstruction company in Baltimore, Second Chance, by 250 jobs, doubling their current employment of 250 workers earning fair wages and benefits. A digest of the most pressing climate-related news, released every Tuesday and Friday. Learn how composting protects the soil and climate while creating jobs in our series of posters. But plans for replicating Camp Small, even with federal aid, have stalled; despite the development of a comprehensive citywide plan for organics collection and processing several years ago; and despite the progress made in the private sector. But new research shows that Baltimore has only attained an estimated residential plastic recycling rate of 2.1. Read responses to common comment topics and a list of all comments on the SWMP Comment Webpage. The University has a long history of exploitation in Baltimore, including medical racism and unethical research as well as gentrification. However, a spokesperson for the Plastics Industry Association said, The plastics industry has invested and continues to invest billions of dollars into new recycling technologies and programs at home and abroad to expand the universe of products and materials that can be recycled.. Furthermore, composting is directly tied to local food production and sustainable waste systems. Curb sort collection offers an opportunity for even more savings and efficiencies. But before something like a six-pack ring can break down, it will become brittle, breaking into what are known as microplastics. Zero Waste Maryland Maryland's Plan to Reduce, Reuse and Recycle Nearly All Waste Generated in Maryland by 2040 . At other local colleges like Towson University, students and faculty are mobilizing to encourage their institutions to pledge a minimum tonnage of organic waste to the community compost facility that is planned. and BRGE ABIRAL That closure timeline is based on ongoing litigation. ILSRCo-founder Neil Seldmantold Waste Dive the report is "unique" in its scope and emphasis and could play a role in the city's upcoming April elections. The company is suing the city to stop the clean air ordinance. WheelabratorTechnologies spokesperson Michelle Nadeauargued moving to "zero waste" will be easier said than done in Baltimore, maintaining "Wheelabratoris arguably doing more than any other member of the private sector to increase recycling and reduce waste"in the city. The Countrys excellent recycling program can now supply factories, as envisioned by Chou En Lai when he declared that the 10,00 workers of the Shanghai Resource Recovery Company be formed immediately after Communist victory in 1949. It calls for community outreach and education about composting and . To this end, we established a campus chapter of the Post-Landfill Action Network (PLAN), an inter-institutional network supporting students in mobilizing their universities toward zero-waste practices. Developers plan to build 91 homes in the affected area, further stressing the sewer system, Kach said . Charging infrastructure is also a growing concern. https://www.romaquip.com/kerb-sort#productivity. The facility also generates electricity and steam used to heat downtown buildings; without it, the company argues, demand for fossil fuels would rise. But new research shows that Baltimore has only attained an estimated residential plastic recycling rate of 2.1 percent, far below the national average of about nine percent. Waste campaigners estimate that food waste and other organic materials make up 40% of the waste stream. It is important to recognize that experts around the globe agree that achieving zero waste is a long-term objective that will require considerable behavioral change on the part of consumers and significant differences in the way products are manufactured and packaged.. Reusable and repairable items make up only from 2-5 percent of the waste stream, but they are valued at $500/ton. The authors call for supporting statewide restrictions on plastic-based products and changing the state's definition of incineration as renewable energy. Were going to move it.. The zero-waste plan that Campbell helped develop was launched with the support of Baltimore City Council members in February. We invite all students, faculty and staff interested in sustainable futures to join us. Baltimore's Fair Development Plan for Zero Waste: 2020-2040 and Beyond For the purpose of calling on the Mayor, the Board of Estimates, and all affected City agencies to formallyacknowledge and move forward in implementing the "Fair Development Plan for Zero Waste." Recitals This is about your future.. Complacency is neglect. People think you can put [plastic bags] in your recycling bin, Enck said. The city could provide a shared fee for every ton diverted from the waste stream to these community composting operations based on the savings that the city accrues when tons of materials are diverted from the waste stream. 70% of the Universitys waste ends up in a landfill or incinerated, and the inadequacy of our current trash system means students struggle to properly dispose of their waste. Such pledges will ensure that the facility can operate at a viable scale. The incinerator is also Baltimores chief industrial source of air pollution, including nitrogen oxide, lead and mercury, according to Environmental Protection Agency data. Published by the Students of Johns Hopkins since 1896, EXAMINING HOPKINS HOSPITAL'S RELATIONSHIP WITH BALTIMORE, environmental justice activists correlate. Comments were made on multiple platforms, including email, Konveio (a platform that allows you to add comments directly on the draft) and testimony at public meetings. That closure timeline is based on ongoing litigation, the Curtis Bay Baltimore Regional Medical Waste incinerator, whose operators say the law will force them to shut down. The discussion comes at a fraught time for the recycling industry. Part of ditching incineration could mean arranging transfer to landfills and composting sites outside the city. These tiny pieces, less than five millimeters in length, can wreak havoc on the environment by choking wildlife. Community Composting Webinars Additional companies and organizations working on organic materials in Baltimore include 4mycity and private haulers like Compost Cab, Compost Crew, and Veterans Compost. Junior Environmental Studies major Alex Noel contributed to this article. Residents had the opportunity to submit written comments and/or provide testimony at a public meeting during each stage. Dont miss a beat. Recycling has become more challenging since China in 2018 stopped buying much of the recyclable material the U.S. used to send overseas, largely because of poor recycling habits by Americans. Enck said people hoping to recycle it are better off avoiding using it altogether. A community-led movement for waste alternatives. The city. Last June, Baltimore City Council passed a "zero waste" resolution urging the city to reduce its waste output, backed by city officials, including the Department of Public Works. | December 9, 2021, COURTESY OF SOUTH BALTIMORE COMMUNITY LAND TRUST. But, these carts could underpin a dual stream systemall paper in the carts, all containers in a bin to be collected at the same time, a first step towards obtaining high quality dual stream materials begins. The plan was released by United Workers, based in the Curtis Bay section of south Baltimore on February 22, 2020. Smoke containing dioxins, one of the most dangerous known chemical groups, heavy metals and various greenhouse gases can be seen escaping the incinerators stack from miles away. They are the product of illegal dumping and unfair evictions, and the plan would help residents keep them clean, she said. Residents of South Baltimore suffer from high rates of respiratory and cardiac disease, which environmental justice activists correlate with the heavy pollution they face. We, students and faculty at the University, have the power to insist that Hopkins commit to zero-waste infrastructure in Baltimore, alleviate pollution and tackle environmental racism and health disparities. A Just Transition to Zero Waste. The Baltimore incinerator causes $55 million annually in health problems. Limited community education materials were distributed or posted with additional funding from the Recycling Partnership while direct outreach around properly utilizing the new carts varied across the city and council districts. But sustainability requires thinking beyond the climate crisis. The youth leaders who stopped the construction of a second incinerator in Baltimore in 2016 went on to form the South Baltimore Community Land Trust (SBCLT), an organization working for development without displacement in the city. The NSR program trains community leaders to run composting projects that engage and serve their communities. The University has an obligation to address these concerns. Another incentive to keep incinerators running are the residences, office buildings and facilities that rely on them for power. Pennsylvania legislators revive bill to overhaul e-scrap recycling program. Even a totalitarian regime could not withstand the public outrage and international embarrassment of its recycling system after the film Plastic China by Juliang Wang, A Portrait of Poverty, Ambition and Hope Set in a World of Hate, was released and distributed in 2017. Carlos Sanchez, a Baltimore high-school student and youth organizer for Free Your Voice and Fair Development Land Trust, responded to the announcement of a new Zero Waste Commission for the City with a thought-provoking op/ed in Baltimore Brew.. Supportive Baltimore council members are expected to hold a press conference Monday afternoon about the plan, with introduction of a resolution set to follow soon after. Replacing 95% of the existing MTA bus fleet with zero emission vehicles by 2050. Our library of local, state, and federal policies on composting and community development. They include plans to salvage construction and demolition materials and promote community adoption and ownership of vacant lots and buildings. Instead of sending off mixed low value materials worth less than $100 per ton, Baltimore could be processing these same items into clean, baled and aggregated materials in house, producing exports worth up to $650 and higher. Liss said the overarching principle behind zero-waste planning is conservation of all resources, meaning both responsible production and consumption of goods, reuse and recovery of materials, and no discharges to air land or water. Its use continued throughout the 20th Century and particularly during World War II, when the U.S. government needed to conserve natural resources for the war effort, such as the sand required as a raw material for glass or the silk used to make ropes. In May 2018, resolution 18-0086R, which is a follow-up resolution to 17-022R, was adopted. Topics covered: recycling, landfills, collections, organics diversion, waste-to-energy, and much more. But those with 3, 4, 6 or 7 have zero or negative market value and are likely to end up polluting waterways or sitting in dumps. Two public final review meetings (online and in-person): 4/10/23-Enoch Pratt Free Library SW Anchor Branch, 291 Community Associations in Department of Plannings. Information around Baltimores flawed waste management system and its impacts on residents health was shared with community associations and assorted stakeholders across the cityand Baltimore region. By continuing to use this site, you accept this policy. Contact Us. Currently, Hopkins sends hundreds of tons of food waste each year to a facility 40 miles away in Prince Georges County, at great expense in cost and fuel. Before switching careers to journalism he taught English as a second language in China and Taiwan, where he also studied Mandarin. This participatory process led to an extensive report entitled " Baltimore's Fair Development Plan for Zero Waste ," which was released by United Workers in spring 2020. But the proliferation of single-use plastic is not unique here or to the other cities included in the study; such plastics pose problems around the country and the world. Like other institutional members of Baltimore Colleges and Universities for a Sustainable Environment, Hopkins needs to uphold its responsibility to all its constituents University affiliates and Baltimore residents alike. Sign up to learn more and help advance a part of the plan here. ILSR has been working with many agencies and organizations in Baltimore for the past decade, including close partnerships with, , the Baltimore Office of Sustainability, the, Botanical Garden in NYC is a Hub for Composting, F, waste - recycling based economic development, Baltimores Fair Development Plan for Zero Waste, Waste Dive: Surveying the corporate-controlled EPR landscape in 2022, The 2022 REBUILD Act: Building Deconstruction and the Revitalization of Baltimore Communities, Hierarchy to Reduce Food Waste and Grow Community, Posters: Compost Impacts More Than You Think, Neighborhood Soil Rebuilders Composter Training Program, Composting for Food Sovereignty in Atlanta, Catalyzing Greater Equity Through Composting, Cities Exclusive Agreements With Trash Collectors Are Holding Back Community Composters, Through Pedal-Power, Community Composters Cultivate Deeper Connections with their Community, Composting Connects Black and Latinx Youth to their Roots. This committee would have legislative and public accountability through regular reporting, open meetings discussing progress, breakthroughs and challenges on Zero Waste projects while further advancing policy interventions with City Council. The table below summarizes and provides resources for each stage: The Bureau of Solid Waste received over 700 comments throughout the planning process. Amid increasing momentum for the zero-waste movement, both in the city and at Hopkins, University students and faculty took part in a public action at Baltimores City Hall in October, calling on Mayor Brandon Scott to develop a local compost facility in the city. At best, much of the plastic that is reused is downcycled, a process that results in a lower quality, structurally weaker product than the original one created by virgin materials. Neglect is violence. The presentation of the report and videos was led by United Workers young activists, who were also essential in stopping a planned 4,000 ton-per-day garbage incinerator in Curtis Bay in 2016. Three workers may be used instead of two. By LAIS SANTORO Waste to Energy facilities, especially those located close to point of generation of the wastelike Baltimorereduce greenhouse gas impacts by minimizing transportation, recovering additional metals for recycling and offsetting electricity produced by fossil fuels, Urban said. EcoJustice Radio visits Baltimore, Maryland, setting the standard for #ZeroWasteCities by ensuring social equity. For the past 30 years, the Loading Dock nonprofit building materials reuse center has further provided recycled building materials to low-income communities. The NSR program trains community leaders to run composting projects that engage and serve their communities. Investment in recycled paper mills, plastic plants and electronic scrap recycling and reuse has soared. ICN provides award-winning climate coverage free of charge and advertising. The plan consolidates goals for managing the Citys solid waste stream, assesses the existing solid waste collection systems, current and future disposal capacity needs, and how zero waste strategies like reuse, recycling, and composting are to be implemented. The Bureau of Solid Waste submitted the final draft to MDE on May 8th 2023. The primary culprit behind the low recycling rate, the report found, was single-use plastic items like Ziploc bags, packaging, plastic grocery bags and cling wrap, known as plastic film. The SBCLT maintains their ongoing youth leadership while the Zero Waste outreach coalition has developed and continued intentional partnerships with assorted stakeholders. The Baltimore City Council was contemplating the creation of a Zero Waste Commission.

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