Oneida-Herkimer Source Separated Organics Project

What was the Challenge?

To reduce waste and improve recycling efforts beyond the traditional recyclable items such as plastic containers, glass bottles and cardboard boxes emerging materials and waste streams need to be considered. Organic solid waste materials, such as food wastes can represent up to 20% of the traditionally non-recycled solid waste stream that a municipality is challenged with managing. Given the large percentage of material potentially available to a municipality, the Authority investigated and ultimately implemented a source separated organics recycling program. This system further increases their overall system recycling efforts by reducing food wastes, while beneficially utilizing the energy within the waste to generate electricity within an anaerobic digester.

How did Barton & Loguidice provide a solution?

B&L leveraged our extensive local solid waste planning experience, regulatory contacts and detailed knowledge of environmental permitting to provide the multi-county waste Authority with applicable and useable feasibility studies for the project, assistance with grant funding applications and timely environmental permitting of the project. Our extensive site-specific knowledge allowed a streamlined investigation and evaluation process which accelerated early project milestones.

Why was the project a success?

Organic waste diversion and beneficial end use of source separated food wastes is an emerging technology that allows further conservation of natural resources. Often emerging technologies, when implemented, can be financially burdensome to municipalities. B&L provided assistance with grant applications to stabilize project costs and applicable feasibility studies that provided a cost-effective basis for design that was implemented.