Florida is home to a large and dispersed population, complex ecosystems that can be adversely affected by pollution, and cities in which development continues at an unprecedented pace.
According to state agency analysis, organic waste (such as food scraps, yard trimmings and agricultural residues) makes up a large percentage of the overall waste stream in the state.
To address the environmental and economic challenges presented by organic waste, Florida has begun developing and implementing composting and organic waste management initiatives to reduce landfill disposal, decrease greenhouse gas emissions, provide sustainable products to businesses, protect natural resources, promote diversity in agriculture with local farms being successful in the burgeoning sector.
Why Composting Matters in Florida
In Florida, one of the largest constituents of municipal solid waste (MSW) and thus its landfill burden is organic waste.
Organic materials break down without oxygen, or anaerobically, in landfills and create methane—a potent greenhouse gas that drives climate change—when disposed of like food scraps and yard waste. On the contrary, it gives composting to organic waste for aerobic decomposition that results in nutrient-rich compost, which is utilized to ensure high fertility through soil enrichment by enhancing water retention as well as agricultural production.
In comparison, diverting organic waste from otherwise end in the landfill through composting converts it into an asset and is hence part of a sustainable alternative.
Soil quality is paramount in Florida where much of its history was based on the richness or scarcity of the soil, but as continual land use and degradation throughout the history of Florida takes its toll on both natural systems and human proactivity rather than reactiveness against areas like air and water quality along with climate change, composting and organic waste management will be an important avenue to not only effectively manage waste streams but improve soil health while utilizing concepts such as circular economy top down.
Statewide Composting Efforts
Though composting is far from universal through out Florida, many areas are making great progress in expanding rates of composting. That being said, there are some local governments that have started using curbside organics collection programs in urban centers like Miami, Orlando and West Palm Beach, where high quantities of organic waste occur. These programs pick up organic materials—food scraps, yard waste—from residential and commercial sources and take the yucky stuff to local compost facilities where it is turned into compost.
One example in Florida is Palm Beach County, where the county has been running a successful yard waste composting program for many years. Palm Beach County has been taking initiatives to expand its food waste diversion capacity including working with local farms and organizations to process collected food scraps into compost or animal feed.
Another example involves the city of Orlando in central Florida where the jurisdiction introduced an organics recycling program designed to reduce food waste and convert it intro composts for local parks and community gardens, with the help of dumpster rental services.
Florida’s agricultural connection. Florida is the country’s top agricultural state and apart from waste diversion and reduction of conventional landfilling, composting also presents agriculture-related benefits. Florida boasts the biggest variety of crops ranging from fruits, vegetables, nuts, and legumes, among others. Agricultural organic waste produced in the state including manure, crop residues, farm slurry, and others can be composted to produce compost used to enrich the soil and reduce dependence on chemical fertilization.
Composting agricultural waste diverts the waste from the field to the landfill, and it helps restore soil fertility, eroded by soil cropping, and salinization from fertilization. Composting reduces the need for synthetic fertilizer, in addition to preventing washing away of the topsoil, maintains the soil structure and supports sustainable farming.
Some Florida farmers have taken large scale composting with agricultural waste and transforming it into valuable soil amendment. This practice not only benefits the environment but also provides an economic opportunity for farmers interested in managing their waste while at the same time enhancing the health of their soil. State and local programs are also supporting agricultural producers in the state in composting efforts providing technical and financial support.
Reducing Food Waste
Another major type of organic waste in Florida is food waste. The state is fighting to end food waste at the source through outreach, incentives and partnerships with food banks and organizations. Florida has also backed efforts to incentivize businesses, including restaurants and grocery stores, to donate instead of throwing away surplus food. These programs rescue food for community organizations so people in need can eat, rather than being wasted and generating organic waste that goes to landfills.
Though composting is valuable, where we can have a greater impact is by preventing food from getting wasted in the first place, at home and in commerce. Florida has also made efforts to implement food waste reduction and diversion practices through the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and non-profit groups like Feeding Florida. By raising awareness and collaborating with food producers and distributors, these organizations hope to tackle the root causes of wasteful disposal practices — reducing its environmental footprint.
Challenges and Opportunities
Composting, organic waste management still have a way to go in Florida, waste management experts at Same Day Dumpster Rental West Palm Beach say. The state is making strides toward reducing landfill-bound trash. A major hurdle is the absence of readily available composting infrastructure.
Whereas larger urban areas have implemented organics collection programs, rural and suburban communities are less likely to have the infrastructure and resources available to implement such programs. Already, the work to create infrastructure for large-scale composting such as composting facilities and collection systems involves big money and coordination between local governments, private entities, and residents.
Public awareness and participation is another stumbling block. Most residents and businesses are not aware of what composting can offer or simply do not know how to do it correctly. In response to this challenge, the state and local authorities have started ramping up outreach initiative efforts by providing educational material, having workshops, as well as incentives for participation in composting programs. Likewise, they are pushing for better inventory management in restaurants and grocery stores to lower food waste, as well as donating unsold food that is still safe to eat to organizations.
Moving Forward: What the Future of Composting Will Look Like in Florida
With Florida becoming ever more populous and faced with difficult environmental challenges like climate change, water pollution, and waste management, composting will continue to be a sporadically relevant feature of the state’s sustainability landscape.
For long-term sustainability objectives, the strategies will be to expand composting infrastructure systems, divert organic waste materials from landfills, and support programmes on significant reduction of food waste. The ag sector in the state will directly benefit from composting practices to improve waste diversion and health of a soils.
The Florida DEP has ambitious targets for reducing and diverting waste, so there will be no doubt that compost will feature prominently in these plans.
There is still much to do in terms of state level composting infrastructure and increased participation, but Florida’s waste on soil strategy represents an opportunity towards a pathway for sustainability toward a circular economy. By investing more in outreach and education, and creating new partnerships between industry stakeholders, Florida can transform organic waste from a liability into an opportunity for sustainable communities to enhance the environment through composting.