BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 1826
Page 1
Date of Hearing: May 7, 2014
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Mike Gatto, Chair
AB 1826 (Chesbro) - As Amended: April 22, 2014
Policy Committee: Natural
ResourcesVote:5-2
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
Yes Reimbursable: No
SUMMARY
This bill requires specified businesses that generate organic
waste to arrange for recycling services for the material. This
bill also requires CalRecycle to:
1)Identify and recommend actions to address state and federal
permitting and siting challenges and to encourage the
continued viability of the state's organic waste processing
and recycling infrastructure.
2)Cooperate with local government agencies and the solid waste
industry to provide assistance and incentives for increasing
the feasibility of organic waste recycling.
FISCAL EFFECT
Minor, absorbable costs for CalRecyle to recommend actions and
provide assistance.
COMMENTS
1)Purpose. This bill is intended help achieve the state's air
quality, GHG, and waste reduction goals by diverting organic
materials from landfills. According to the author, recycling
organic waste provides significant GHG reductions over
landfilling. Composting and other organics processing
technologies, including anaerobic digestion, reduce GHGs by
avoiding the emissions that would be generated by the
material's decomposition in a landfill.
2)Background. CalRecycle is tasked with diverting at least 75%
AB 1826
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of solid waste statewide by 2020. Currently, organic
materials make up one-third of the waste stream and food
continues to be the highest single item disposed at over 15%
of disposal.
Landfill gas is generated by the decomposition of organic
materials such as food, paper, wood, and yard waste. Fifty
percent of landfill gas is methane, a GHG that is 21 times
more efficient at trapping heat than carbon dioxide. While
most modern landfills have systems in place to capture
methane, significant amounts continue to escape into the
atmosphere. According to ARB's GHG inventory, approximately 7
million tons of CO2 equivalent are released annually by
landfills. That number is expected to increase to 8.5 million
tons of CO2 equivalent by 2020.
The Governor's 2014-15 Budget proposal for cap-and -trade
revenues, the Cap-and-Trade Auction Revenue Expenditure Plan,
requests $30 million for each of the next two years for
CalRecycle to support projects designed to increase recycling
and composting. The proposal includes $20 million for grants
to expand existing or develop new facilities that process
organic or recyclable materials.
3)Previous Legislation. Last year, AB 323 would have required
CalRecycle to adopt regulations by January 1, 2017 to require
a large-quantity commercial organics generator to arrange for
separate organics collection and recycling services. AB 323
also contained provisions relating to alternative daily cover
in landfills and was held on this committee's suspense file.
Unlike AB 323, this bill does not require CalRecycle to adopt
regulations.
Analysis Prepared by : Jennifer Galehouse / APPR. / (916)
319-2081