Solid Waste & Recycling Newsletter

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation sent this bulletin on 11/03/2022 04:16 PM EDT
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
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Solid Waste & Recycling Newsletter

Composting Your Pumpkin Leftovers

Jack-O-Lanterns

Instead of haunting our landfills with pumpkins, try composting! Pumpkins and other fall gourds are great additions to your home compost pile.

Tips for Composting Pumpkins:

  • Smash up any pumpkin rinds and guts before mixing them into your backyard pile with plenty of carbon sources (leaves, wood chips, twigs, etc.).
  • Be sure to remove any candles, wax, or lights from your spooky creation, and avoid composting any painted or glittered pumpkins.
  • Removing seeds ahead of time can help prevent growing pumpkin plants in your compost pile later on.

Pumpkin Smash or Pumpkin Drop-Off Events
No home compost pile? Find a local Pumpkin Smash or pumpkin drop-off event in your area for a fun way to send your Jack-O-Lanterns off sustainably.

Center For Sustainable Materials Management Launches Website

Housed at SUNY College of Environmental Forestry, and in collaboration with Syracuse University, the Center for Sustainable Materials Management is working to bring together people and organizations to innovate the way materials are managed in New York.

The Center for Sustainable Materials Management is focused on the following:

Upcoming Webinar: Managing Food Waste – Overview of Free Technical Assistance Programs

Join DEC for a webinar on November 17 from 11:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. to hear an update on the implementation of the New York State Food Donation and Food Scraps Recycling (effective January 1, 2022) and about two free technical assistance programs available to businesses, institutions, organics recyclers, and others. The free programs are available from Feeding NYS and the Center for EcoTechnology (CET). Register for the webinar.

DEC will be joined by Feeding NYS who will discuss their donation technical assistance program and CET who will talk about DEC’s newest technical assistance initiative, Rethink Food Waste NY.

For more information about Feeding NYS technical assistance program.

For more information about Rethink Food Waste NY technical assistance program.

Background: Effective January 1, 2022, businesses and institutions that generate two tons of wasted food and food scraps per week or more must donate their excess edible food and recycle all remaining food scraps if they are within 25 miles of a food scraps recycler (composter, anaerobic digester, etc.). This law excludes businesses in New York City (that already have a local law in place), hospitals, nursing homes, adult care facilities, and K-12 schools.

View list of businesses required to comply with the law during the 2023 calendar year. (PDF)

Please contact FoodScrapsLaw@dec.ny.gov with any questions.

Public Events

Conferences, Workshops & Webinars

Funding/RFP Opportunities - Application Deadlines

We Want To Hear From You!

Is there a topic you'd like to learn more about or a public event or workshop related to recycling (organics, textiles, traditional recyclables, etc.) you'd like the greater community to know more about? E-mail us at organicrecycling@dec.ny.gov and it could be featured in an upcoming Solid Waste & Recycling Newsletter.