Onus Is on Processors, Not Farmers, to Make Green Waste Work

Rolling out the barrel is working for Ventura County. Most of its cities have either achieved the state’s decade-old mandate to recycle more trash or they are very close. But to be truly effective, recycling programs must create reusable products--and consumers must put them to work.

Assembly Bill 939 was enacted in 1990 to cut in half the amount of trash going into California landfills by this year. Its goals were to save landfill space and to create public awareness of the importance of recycling as a way to preserve our environment.

This law has done much to change the way we live. Much of its success in Ventura County is due to the simple three-barrel curbside recycling program that uses one bin for mixed recyclables, one for green waste and one for trash.

The key is using these barrels correctly.

The recycle barrel must contain the accepted materials only. Our green waste facility will accept only those barrels that contain nothing but green waste. If we deliver this material clean, then it is the responsibility of the processor to produce a clean, marketable product that can be used as an energy source, an attractive landscape product, a plant-growing medium or as a soil rejuvenator that promotes water conservation.

We have all seen the recycle logo with three arrows forming a circle; reduce, reuse and recycle is its message. The “reuse” part is the important next step in our fight to preserve our world. It means developing products that can stand the scrutiny of the marketplace. We as end-use consumers are not completing the circle until we seek out these products.

The Times article “Neighbor’s Grass Waste Not Always Greener,” June 26, documented the pitfalls of spreading inadequately processed green waste on farmland. Before such material is marketed it must be properly handled. Its use on farmland is valuable only if it is safe and clean--and applied in the right amounts. Green waste conserves water, reduces weed growth and is a deterrent to orchard growth problems such as root rot. This same material, used as a soil amendment, can increase farm productivity and the size of the fruit or vegetables grown. It can also act as a catalyst in soil regeneration, creating productive land in previously marginal or barren areas. But wholesale application without regard to the needs of the land is akin to operating a dump, plain and simple.

The article’s assertion that “Cities need the farmers to accept their waste; or otherwise, there is no market” shows a lack of understanding of the green waste industry. There is far more recycled green waste coming into Ventura County than agricultural use alone can handle. Expecting farmers to accept it all is a planned failure.

Fortunately, there are many other uses for recycled green waste. Some of it is chipped and shipped to clean-burning energy plants located throughout California and the West. Some is used for landscape cover in such places as freeway offramps, buildings, sports arenas and even our own yards, where it completes the cycle of reuse.

Some Ventura County green waste has found its way into products such as Agromin’s sod amendments that are used annually at the Super Bowl. So take heart, sports fans: Even if you can’t make it to the big show, your yard clippings may.

We owe local farmers a processed, safe, effective product that helps them grow better crops. We owe the citizens of Ventura County a sustainable marketplace and a chance to reuse the material from their own homes to enhance the beauty of their yards and gardens.