In 2020, an estimated 615,500 tons of wasted food scraps were disposed of in Wisconsin Landfills. This accounts for roughly 20.5% of waste that is added to our landfills every year.
Benefits of Recycling
Environment
Recycling provides many benefits to our environment. By recycling our materials, we create a healthier planet for ourselves and future generations.
Conserve natural resources: Recycling reduces the need to extract resources such as timber, water, and minerals for new products.
Climate change: According to the most recent EPA data, the recycling and composting of municipal solid waste (MSW or trash) saved over 193 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2018.
Energy savings: Recycling conserves energy. For example, recycling just 10 plastic bottles saves enough energy to power a laptop for more than 25 hours. To estimate how much energy you can save by recycling certain products, EPA developed the individual Waste Reduction Model (iWARM).
Waste and pollution reduction: Recycling diverts waste away from landfills and incinerators, which reduces the harmful effects of pollution and emissions.
Summary of the National Strategy
On June 12, 2024, the White House, along with EPA, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration released the "National Strategy for Reducing Food Loss and Waste and Recycling Organics." This strategy is part of a series of strategies on building a more circular economy for all.
The goal of the strategy is to prevent the loss and waste of food and increase recycling of food and other organic materials, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, save households and businesses money, and build cleaner, healthier communities.
The four main objectives in the strategy are:
-
Objective 1: Prevent food loss.
-
Objective 2: Prevent food waste.
-
Objective 3: Increase the recycling rate for all organic waste.
-
Objective 4: Support policies that incentivize and encourage the prevention of food loss and waste and organics recycling.
Organic materials in landfills are compressed with other waste to open up space. But that compression pushes out oxygen, which helps break down food. Without oxygen, food is broken down by other microorganisms. !“And those microorganisms off-put methane, which is a greenhouse gas that’s 28 times more powerful than CO2,” she said