Collections Questions and Answers - CalRecycle - CA.gov

Collection Services

Q: Do the regulations require single-family residences and multifamily complexes to subscribe to organics collection and recycle both green waste and food waste beginning January 1, ?

If you want to learn more, please visit our website HW.

Yes, the regulations require jurisdictions to provide organic waste collection services to all single-family and multifamily residences of all sizes and businesses that generate organic waste beginning January 1, .

Yes, single-family and multifamily complexes are required to recycle both green waste and food waste, as well as other organic waste materials, beginning January 1, .

Q: Are property managers of multifamily complexes required to provide organics collection service to residences? Are multifamily dwellings exempt from the requirements of Article 3, Section .9(b)?

Yes. The regulations require commercial businesses, including multifamily residential dwellings of five units or more, to provide or arrange for organic waste collection services consistent with Article 3 and local requirements (see Article 3, Section .10). These requirements include, supplying and providing access to an adequate number of containers in sufficient sizes and locations with correct container colors and labels for employees, contractors, tenants, and customers.

Additionally, they are required to annually provide information to employees, contractors, tenants, and customers about organic waste recovery requirements and proper sorting of organic waste. Commercial businesses must also provide information to new tenants before or within 14 days of occupation of the premises.

Multifamily dwellings of any size are not subject to Article 3, Section .9(b).

Q: Will a jurisdiction be able to allow shared accounts?

Yes, a jurisdiction is allowed to provide shared collection service between generators. The regulations do not prohibit a jurisdiction from providing shared collection service between generators.

Q: Are multifamily dwellings required to provide an organics container for residents at all enclosures on the property?

The regulations require commercial businesses, including multifamily residential dwellings of five units or more, to provide or arrange for organic waste collection services (see Article 3, Section .10). These requirements include supplying and providing access to an adequate number of containers in sufficient sizes and locations with correct container colors and labels.

Ideally, organics, recycling, and landfill containers are located together in the same enclosure, as this ensures convenience for residences. However, multifamily residential family dwelling facility managers can choose to locate organics collection in a nearby enclosure when locating all containers at every enclosure is impossible or impractical. If the location is not adequate and residents are choosing to dispose of their organics in a trash container that is closer in proximity to their residence, then the complex would not be complying with the law. Multifamily complex facility managers will need to monitor the program to ensure that the containers are in adequate locations. If the waste hauler identifies a contamination issue, the jurisdiction would inform the multifamily complex to address the situation.

Q: Do jurisdictions need to collect organics in public spaces such as beaches and parks?

No. CalRecycle acknowledges that contamination of organic waste at public parks and beaches may be a problem, as there is no ability to monitor these containers. Organic waste is not required to be collected at public parks and beaches.

Q: Can residents provide their own containers for organics collection?

Jurisdictions or its designee (like a hauler) must provide containers to the generator. Containers provided by the residents themselves would not comply with the regulations.

Providing a container is an inextricable part of providing a collection service. Requirements for local jurisdictions to collect and recover organic waste from their residential and commercial generators are critical for the state&#;s efforts to keep organic waste out of landfills and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Further, jurisdictions are in a position to obtain uniform collection containers with standardized colors from specialized suppliers, whereas individual generators are not. If jurisdictions are not required to provide compliant containers, generators are left to comply with the color requirements on their own and may have a difficult time obtaining standardized containers due to the whims of market availability of properly colored containers through hardware stores, supply stores, or other business that have no obligations to stock compliant container colors. This sets up an untenable, large-scale regulatory noncompliance problem.

The requirement for jurisdictional provision of collection containers is also necessary from an efficient enforcement perspective. Placing the compliance responsibility on generators would create an unnecessarily burdensome enforcement model. Ensuring container color compliance would necessitate inspections of generators by the jurisdiction, potentially involving thousands of homes or businesses. Furthermore, potentially broad numbers of individual generators may be subject to enforcement if compliant containers are not reasonably available for purchase (see preceding paragraph). Instead of this burdensome model, CalRecycle finds that a single point of enforcement with the jurisdiction is more efficient and equitable. Jurisdictions are in a position to obtain uniform collection containers with standardized colors from specialized suppliers where individual generators are not.

The only exception is that generators in high-elevation jurisdictions will be able to continue to use customer provided containers that fit in their locked bear boxes.

Q: What is an example of organic waste not designated for collection in the green container?

If the jurisdiction is collecting food waste, cardboard, mixed paper, paper products, printing and writing paper, and green waste in the green container, then that would cover most of the organics covered by the regulations. However, there are other organics, such as wood, dry lumber, and composite products that contain organic waste that may end up in the black/gray container. Refer to the definition of &#;organic waste&#; in the regulations for further guidance..

Q: Do collection services under SB have to be automated (as in a claw on a truck picking up the container), or can they be manual (as in a human picking up the container)?

The regulations do not prohibit a jurisdiction from providing manual collection services.

Q: Where in the regulations does it say a jurisdiction must automatically enroll generators in services? What does providing automatic service look like?

The phrase &#;automatically enroll&#; does not appear in the regulations. Jurisdictions, however, are specifically required to provide service per Article 3, Sections &#; .3. The word provide was specifically chosen as the operative word as it differs from AB , which only requires that they offer service. Just as jurisdictions must provide services such as water or garbage collection, they now need to provide recycling.

Q: What if a facility a jurisdiction sends food waste to does not accept food soiled paper?

Since paper is an organic waste that needs to be recycled, the jurisdiction would need to find other facilities to process the food-soiled paper. The jurisdiction, or its hauler, would need to separate the food-soiled paper from the food waste prior to sending the material to the facility that accepts food waste only.

Q: Why does SB require residential organic waste collection services?

Residential collection services are necessary because more than half of organic waste is generated by the residential sector. SB builds upon the state&#;s mandatory commercial organic waste recycling requirements, which began with large commercial generators in and will now include residential generators in .

Q: What if local organics processing facilities do not accept all organic waste (such as palm fronds, ivy, pet, and human waste, etc.) as defined in the regulations?

While palm fronds and monocotyledons have been difficult to handle at composting operations, at least one facility has opened in California that can grind this material and use it in animal feed products, reportedly at a cost significantly less than that of landfilling. Allowing jurisdictions to prohibit this material from being placed in the green container could potentially deter the development of innovative technologies.

A jurisdiction may prohibit human waste in the green or blue container in a 3-container system and in the green container in a 2-container system. This does not apply to pet waste, as many jurisdictions collect manure and take this material to processing facilities that have to meet pathogen reduction requirements. Human and pet waste are not required to be measured as organic waste for the purpose of measuring contamination in Article 3, Section .5.

Q: Should paper be placed in the organics bin or the recycling bin?

The regulations allow jurisdictions to decide what recycling container in which to collect paper. This provision was included in response to comments from jurisdictions about the need for such flexibility.

Q: Do the regulations apply to agricultural waste for organic waste collection?

The regulations define organic waste by material type and not by source sector. Jurisdictions are required to provide organic waste collection services to generators subject to their authority. However, as noted in the regulations, nothing prevents generators from managing their own organic waste on site (e.g. on-farm composting). Additionally, jurisdictions may waive certain generators from collection requirements if they generate de minimis amounts of organic waste for collection.

Q: Should textiles be placed in the blue or gray containers? Can textiles and carpets be collected in the green container?

The regulations specifically state that textiles are allowed in the blue and gray container under specified conditions (Sections .1 and .2). Carpets and textiles are allowed in the gray container regardless of where the contents of the container are subsequently managed. For example, if these are the only organic wastes allowed in the gray container the container does not have to be transported to a high diversion organic waste processing facility.

However, textiles and carpets are not normally accepted by organic waste recycling facilities, such as composting or in-vessel facilities, that usually accept materials collected in green containers. However, CalRecycle included this provision allowing textiles in green containers because stakeholders during the informal rulemaking workshops requested such flexibility. CalRecycle is not aware of any compelling reason to prohibit textiles from being placed in green containers.

Q: Will CalRecycle shut down a high diversion organic waste facility if is not in compliance and is the only facility in the region?

The department will not shut down facilities that do not meet the SB requirement for a high diversion organic waste processing facility. The requirement for ensuring that the material goes to a high diversion organic waste processing facility is on the jurisdictions.

The jurisdiction would have three options in this situation:

1. If the facility can address the issue and meet the recovery rate, then the jurisdiction can continue using the facility
2. Use a different high diversion organic waste processing facility
3. Implement a three-container collection system.

The timeline for any of these options would be laid out in a corrective action plan that is issued to the jurisdiction, as it is understood that any of these options would take some amount of time to address.

Q: How can a facility be required to recover only 75 percent of the organics it receives, but landfill less than 10 percent of organic material [see Title 14, Chapter 12, Article 1, Section (a)(14.5)(B)]? What about the remaining 15 percent?

The 75 percent recovery efficiency level for a &#;high diversion organic waste processing facility&#; is a measure of the amount of organic waste a transfer/processor recovers relative to the amount of organic waste it receives for a source separated collection service or a mixed waste collection service. Material recovery facilities must recover 75 percent of organic material from source-separated or mixed waste collection service and send it on to an organics recovery facility. The organic material sent to an organics recovery facility must meet certain contamination thresholds. Starting in , organics sent to recovery must not have more than 20 percent of incompatible materials. This limit decreases to 10 percent in . This contamination threshold ensures that organics recovery facilities, like composters, have a high-quality feedstock material that yields a high-quality end product. The incompatible materials limit is a cleanliness standard that applies to the organic waste the transfer/processor sends to recovery.

The incompatible materials limit is essential to the integrity of the recovery efficiency measurement, but the two percentages are not cumulative. The incompatible materials limit ensures that the material being weighed as organic waste sent to recovery is actually organic waste. If the organic waste a transfer/processor sends to organic waste recycling facilities (e.g. compost) exceeds the incompatible materials limit, the likelihood of the material being recovered is greatly reduced, and the recovery efficiency numbers would be distorted. See statement of purpose and necessity for Title 14, Chapter 3, Article 6.2, Section .5.1,.5.2 through .5.5 and .5.8. regarding recovery efficiency and incompatible materials limits.

Q: Can the contents of organics and recycling containers be transported to a transfer operation or facility before being sent to a subsequent facility for processing (as this practice is common in rural areas or areas lacking processing infrastructure)?

Yes, Article 3 allows the contents of containers to be initially transported to a consolidation site.

Q: Are campgrounds and marinas that rent water equipment like boats regulated by this law?

All commercial businesses are subject to complying with SB .

Q: Some border counties transport their solid waste and recyclables other states that are not subject to California requirements. Do the regulations impose requirements on these out-of-state facilities?

California does not have the authority to impose requirements upon out-of-state facilities. The regulations impose requirements upon jurisdictions, organic waste generators, and California solid waste facilities. Jurisdictions are responsible for complying with SB and cannot avoid these responsibilities by transporting its organic waste out of the state.

Q: Why are the collection service requirements in the regulations so prescriptive?

SB grants broad regulatory authority to CalRecycle to impose requirements on jurisdictions in order to achieve the organic waste diversion goals of a 50-percent reduction in the level of the statewide disposal of organic waste from the level by and a 75-percent reduction by . This authority includes creation of rules designed to implement these statewide mandates and ensure that the statewide organic requirements are met. CalRecycle has determined that the mandatory collection service requirements and container color and labeling provisions are necessary to maintain consistent standards throughout the state to reduce contamination of organic waste and ensure that collected organic waste is clean and recoverable.

Q: Is organic waste collection required at specific facilities in airports that deal with international waste regulated by the U.S. Department of Food and Agriculture or quarantined or contraband materials seized by U.S. Customs?

Provisions were added to Article 3, Section .13 to address such quarantined material and overriding federal requirements. This section also specifies that nothing in this chapter requires generators, jurisdictions, or other entities subject to these regulations to manage and recover organic waste that federal law explicitly requires to be managed in a manner that constitutes landfill disposal as defined in this chapter. This section is necessary to ensure that these State regulations do not conflict with Federal rules pertaining to the required disposal of types of organic waste defined in this section. Organics diversion requirements are not required of organics collected from specific facilities in airports dealing with international wastes (regulated by Dept. of Food and Ag) and or dealing with quarantined or seized contraband materials (regulated by U.S. Customs). There are over-riding federal requirements related to the treatment (e.g., incineration, autoclaving, etc.) of solid waste from international flights. Article 3, Section .13 addresses such quarantined material and overriding federal requirements and ensures that these state regulations do not conflict with federal rules pertaining to the required disposal of types of organic waste defined in this section.

Q: Can a jurisdiction implementing a 2-container system in which the gray/blue containers are being used collect bagged organic waste in the blue container?

Bags for organic waste are allowed in any of the containers under certain conditions. There are no additional requirements for bags used in a gray or blue container. However, there are certain restrictions if a bag is used in a green container. A jurisdiction may allow use of plastic bags to collect organic waste in the green container if the facilities the jurisdiction uses to recover the source separated organic waste for the jurisdiction provide written notice to the jurisdiction indicating they can process and remove plastic bags.

Q: Are plastic bags allowed in the collection of organic waste?

Bags are allowed. However, there are certain restrictions if a bag is used in a green container. A jurisdiction may allow use of plastic bags to collect organic waste in the green container if the facilities provide annual written notice to the jurisdiction indicating they can process and remove plastic bags.

Compostable plastics may be placed in the green container if the material meets the ASTM D standard for compostability, and the facility that handles the source separated organic waste provides written notice annually to the jurisdiction stating that the facility can process and recover that material. There are no additional requirements for bags used in a gray or blue container.

Q: Many cities have programs such as annual/biannual citywide cleanup events where residents can place excess materials outside of their containers for collection. Under SB , is green waste the only uncontainerized material allowed? Regarding bagging excess materials, how are jurisdictions supposed to make sure there isn&#;t contamination?

The regulations do not apply to this situation. While a bulky item collection program is not required by SB , the regulations do not prohibit bulky item collection programs. Any organic materials collected in bulky item programs and holiday tree programs must be diverted from landfill disposal in a manner consistent with SB . Jurisdictions that have a bulky item collection program are subject to the Organic Waste Collection and Processing requirements of the regulations for any of the bulky items/reusable items collected that are defined as organic waste. For example, if the bulky items are comingled and not source separated, the material would need to be processed at a high diversion organic waste processing facility to separate out the organic waste from the inorganic waste.

SB requires jurisdictions to educate residents about properly sorting organic waste from other materials to reduce contamination. Jurisdictions could add organics source separation information to existing bulky item collection education materials.

To reduce contamination, jurisdictions should provide feedback to residents about properly sorting the organic waste from other materials. The organic waste that is placed in the bags will need to be sent to the appropriate facility so that the organic waste is processed. The jurisdiction will need to assess how this will be dealt with at the appropriate facility if organic waste, recyclables, and trash is placed into the same color bags, e.g., at the facility the bags are opened and the organic waste and recyclables are processed, the bags with organic waste and inorganic recyclables are identified by the resident, etc.

Are you interested in learning more about Custom Garden Waste Biodegradable Bags? Contact us today to secure an expert consultation!

Please see CalRecycle&#;s model franchise agreement on Page 62 for language that could be included in a franchise agreement or permit. https://calrecycle.ca.gov/organics/slcp/education

Q. Does either Health and Safety Code or Public Resources Code mandate that all trash be collected once per week? Could we provide a recycling bin and an organics bin to each trash service recipient (or household) but not require weekly trash collection?

Public Resources Code (PRC) section (a)(1) authorizes the jurisdiction to determine how to best manage solid waste handling, including the frequency of waste collection.

Jurisdictions have the authority to waive generators from weekly collection of blue (recycling) or gray (trash) containers in a two- or three-container collection system [14 CCR section .11(a)(3)]. However, jurisdictions should coordinate any collection frequency waiver with the applicable enforcement agency to determine whether a less-than-weekly schedule would cause solid waste facilities or operations to violate existing state minimum standards.

Jurisdictions may also consult with local health authorities to ensure that the proposed, less-than-weekly waste pick-up schedule would still meet health and safety standards (e.g., not cause a propagation of vectors or other problems).

Q. Our jurisdiction is currently collecting green waste every other week in the green container. In order to comply with SB requirements to collect food waste and food-soiled paper, our jurisdiction plans to have generators place the food waste and food-soiled paper into the green container and continue bi-weekly collection of the green container. Is this allowed under SB regulations?

There is no mandate or requirement for the weekly collection of the green container holding food waste, food soiled paper, or etc. Public Resource Code (PRC) sections and outline the responsibilities of local governments in providing solid waste handling services but they do not require a certain collection frequency.

Refer to PRC section (a)(1) which provides in relevant part that the frequency of collection of solid waste is a matter of local concern. That being said, 14 CCR section mandates that businesses and residents remove trash from their premises at least once every seven (7) days.

Although owners of premises and the tenants thereof must dispose of refuse on a weekly basis, jurisdictions are not required to collect waste weekly. To reconcile this variance in the scheduling, jurisdictions should be mindful to consider the downstream impacts that such a policy decision may have on residential, commercial, and industrial waste generators as well as at the solid waste facility level.

One potential adverse outcome of bi-weekly collection of food waste would be the negative health and safety impacts caused by the propagation of vectors and other health and safety nuisances.

Another adverse outcome would be solid waste facilities or operations&#; inability to process a larger mass of food waste collected at the longer service intervals, thereby causing them to reject the larger loads or face violations of applicable solid waste handling standards.

Jurisdictions should coordinate with local health and safety agency and enforcement agency and consider the potential adverse health and safety impacts and burden on the receiving solid waste facilities when adopting a policy decision on the collection frequency of green containers.

Lastly, should a jurisdiction determine that a bi-weekly collection of green containers with green waste, food waste, food-soiled paper, and etc. would be appropriate given all of the concerns explained above, then it should closely monitor its waste collection service and re-assess or re-set the frequency of waste collection if problems or Code violations were to arise.

May 2 through May 8, marks International Compost Awareness Week &#; an annual week-long educational initiative to get more people composting their food scraps. Composting is a fantastic way to reduce your environmental impact and become closer to zero waste, but there can be a lot of confusion when beginning your composting journey. 

Article continues below advertisement

So in honor of International Compost Awareness Week&#;s goal of educating people on composting, read on for everything you need to know about the difference between compostable and biodegradable bags, plus a few of the best truly compostable bags on the market.

Article continues below advertisement

Source: Getty Images

Are compostable bags actually compostable?

When it comes to trash bags or dog poop bags that feel like plastic, but are marketed as &#;compostable&#; or just &#;biodegradable,&#; consumers often wonder if these bioplastic bags actually break down alongside their food scraps, returning to the earth.

Article continues below advertisement

If the packaging claims that the bags are compostable, they theoretically should break down naturally in a compost setting. According to Plastic Place, for bags to claim they are compostable in North America, they must meet requirements set forth by the government, which will earn them the right to state that they are BPI-certified by the Biodegradable Products Institute. BPI claims to be North America&#;s only third-party tester of ASTM standards for compostable items.

However, many of these compostable bags are only certified compostable in industrial or commercial compost settings &#; as explained by BioBag, industrial compost settings have two advantages that most home compost bins do not: added heat, and that they are managed by professionals.

Article continues below advertisement

So if you are planning to compost your compostable bags in your backyard, you may only have luck if the bag&#;s packaging specifically says that it is backyard compostable. 

If the bag says it is only commercially compostable, bring it to be composted somewhere that offers industrial composting, such as your municipality&#;s compost dropoff bins &#; just make sure to ask if these bags are accepted.

What about biodegradable bags?

While bags that claim to be compostable are typically certified as such, the phrase biodegradable is much less regulated. So if you have any trash bags or packaging that claim to be biodegradable, figuring out the best way to dispose of them could be a bit tricky &#; and you probably shouldn't put them in the compost bin.

Article continues below advertisement

According to BioBag, while some biodegradable bags do break down in composting settings, there is a chance they will leave toxic residues behind. Without the third-party certification that is required for compostable bags, biodegradable bags are just not as reliable when it comes to breaking down in composting settings.

Interestingly, many people purchase trash bags or dog poop bags that state they are biodegradable &#; but then use the bags for garbage, and send them to landfill. While there are valid arguments that these bags are better for the environment than using plastic bags, since bioplastic biodegradable bags are not made from fossil fuels, these bags will still not be able to break down in a landfill, since landfills are anaerobic. In fact, these bags will actually emit greenhouse gases such as methane in a landfill, just like plastic bags (and pretty much everything else in a landfill environment).

Article continues below advertisement

Basically, just because something says biodegradable does not mean that it will break down safely. We recommend sticking to bags certified as compostable by the BPI for any composting purposes &#; and when it comes to disposing of your garbage, check out our guide to reusable trash bags.

These are some of the best compostable bags.

If you&#;re looking for truly compostable bags, there are plenty of options out there. 

Article continues below advertisement

One of our favorite choices is a good old upcycled brown paper bag, such as ones you have lying around from past Whole Foods or Trader Joe&#;s trips. That&#;s right &#; because these bags are made with paper, they are able to break down in composting environments and return to nature. If you drop your compost off at your municipality&#;s compost program, just make sure to ask if brown bags are OK, or if they prefer you rip the bag up before placing it in the bin and after dumping out its contents.

You can also purchase brown bags that are specifically designated for composting, such as these ones by Duro.

Article continues below advertisement

BioBag claims that all of its bags are BPI certified as &#;home compostable&#;, because they are able to biodegrade in home composting bins at average temperatures. Theoretically, any bags that are home compostable should be A-OK to use for industrial composting environments as well. You can also shop BioBag&#;s many bags on EarthHero.

Article continues below advertisement

Stout by Envision&#;s EcoSafe compostable bags are also BPI certified, and the company finds that they degrade in 10 to 45 days.

Certified B Corp Full Circle Home&#;s Fresh Air Compostable Waste Bags are BPI certified compostable, and can also be purchased on EarthHero.

While composting your dog&#;s poop is not always available (since many municipal composting programs do not accept doggie doo), if you do need dog poop bags, check out U.K.-based Beco Pets&#; Compostable Dog Poop Bags. The bags are 100 percent plant-based, certified compostable for both home and commercial composting, and are available on EarthHero for U.S. shoppers.

If you are looking for more details, kindly visit Custom Trash Biodegradable Bags.