BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 624|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 624
Author: Romero (D)
Amended: 4/13/09
Vote: 21
SENATE ENV. QUALITY COMMITTEE : 7-0, 4/27/09
AYES: Simitian, Runner, Ashburn, Corbett, Hancock,
Lowenthal, Pavley
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
SUBJECT : Solid waste: anaerobic digestion
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill (1) defines the term anaerobic
digestion" for purposes of the California Integrated Waste
Management Act of 1989, ((2) defines the term "composting
operation" or "composting facility" as an operation or
facility that produces compost, including but not limited
to, an entity that produces compost either aerobically or
nonaerobically and an operation or facility that utilizes
anaerobic digestion, and (3) revises the definition of the
term "transformation" to exclude anaerobic digestion.
ANALYSIS : Existing law, under the California Integrated
Waste Management Act of 1989:
1.Requires each city or county source reduction and
recycling element to include an implementation schedule
CONTINUED
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that shows a city or county must diver 25 percent of
solid waste from landfill disposal or transformation by
January 1, 1995, through source reduction, recycling, and
composting activities, and must divert 50% of solid waste
on and after January 1, 2000.
2.Defines "compost" as the product resulting from the
controlled biological decomposition of organic wastes
that are source separated from the municipal solid waste
stream, or which are separated at a centralized facility.
3.Defines the term "transformation" as meaning
incineration, pyrolysis, distillation, or biological
conversion, and excludes composting, gasification, or
biomass conversion from that definition.
This bill:
1.Defines "anaerobic digestion" (AD) as a process of
bacterial breakdown or organic materials that involves
the natural biodegradation in the absence of oxygen and
does not exceed a temperature of 140 degrees Fahrenheit.
2.Defines "composting operation" or composting facility" to
mean an operation or facility that produces compost,
including, but not limited to, an entity that produces
compost either aerobically or nonaerobically and an
operation or facility that utilized AD.
3.Clarifies that "AD" is not a transformation technology.
Comments
According to the author's office, there is a need to
clarify the definition of both AD and composting
operations, to make clear that the former involves a
natural process of decomposition absent any oxygen, and to
make clear that the latter include facilities that can
produce compost either aerobically (with oxygen) and
anaerobically (without). As additional facilities of this
type come online, there is a need for the state to clearly
establish guidelines on the range of their activities to
ensure that our environment is adequately protected.
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This bill updates the California Integrated Waste
Management Boards (CIWMBs) framework for regulating
composting facilities to acknowledge the AD process for
producing compost. This bill also specifies that
"transformation," the process of burning or heating solid
waste to reduce its volume, does not include AD. This bill
clarifies that AD is a composting technology and is not
transformation (burning of waste).
Composting is regulated by the CIWMB as one of the options
available for reducing the volume of solid waste disposed
of in landfills and reducing the emissions of landfill
gasses. AD is a composting system that employs
microorganisms to break down biodegradable material in the
absence of oxygen to reduce its volume and mass. The
process produces methane and carbon dioxide rich biogas in
a controlled environment that is captured and can be used
for energy and the solids remaining after digestion can be
used as a fertilizer. AD is a low-heat technology with
optimum temperatures maintained in the range of 95 50 105
degrees Fahrenheit and no higher than 140 degrees
Fahrenheit. When used as a solid waste management
technique, AD diverts organic solid wastes such as paper
and cardboard, yard trimmings, and food waste from landfill
disposal to assist local governments in reaching their
diversion mandates with the added benefit of energy and
fertilizer production.
Solid Waste and Biomass Facilities . The CIWMB regulates
facilities, including composting facilities that manage
municipal solid waste. AD is a technique used by a wide
range of other facilities that utilize waste streams that
are not normally disposed in a solid waste landfill such as
agriculture and forestry wastes. These facilities are not
regulated by the CIWMB. Farms, dairies, wood and paper
mill facilities often utilize AD as a pollution prevention
and energy production strategy. Thus, AD is a widely used
technique not exclusive to the management of municipal
solid waste. AD, while more capital intensive than
traditional composting, has the added benefit of a
controlled environment that limits water and/or leachate
run-off and increases control of air emissions that cause
pollution (including greenhouse gasses) and odors.
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FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
TSM:cm 5/12/09 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: NONE RECEIVED
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