GILROY
– The Gilroy Garlic Festival may stink, but this year a pilot
composting program will decrease the amount of food waste shipped
to the landfill as well as disposal costs for the festival.
GILROY – The Gilroy Garlic Festival may stink, but this year a pilot composting program will decrease the amount of food waste shipped to the landfill as well as disposal costs for the festival.
“Environmentally it’s a great idea. And for the community and the public, it shows the city is making more of an effort to have more of a positive environmental impact,” said Lisa Jensema, city environmental program coordinator.
The Garlic Festival Association, South Valley Disposal and Recycling and the City of Gilroy have teamed up to organize the trial project.
Food waste will be collected from more than 50 vendors in cardboard boxes lined with biodegradable bags. Vendors are asked to compost all food scraps such as vegetables, meats and fruits.
In addition, volunteers who eat in the hospitality area will be asked to compost their food waste and the biodegradable plates, silverware and napkins into designated containers.
All this food waste will be transported by South Valley Disposal and Recycling to a composting facility at the Pacheco Pass Landfill.
And no one will complain if the festival cuts on waste disposal costs, because the savings will go to the volunteers.
“The potential is great to reduce a cost. Wet food is heavy and the festival is charged by the ton (to deposit waste in the landfill),” Jensema said.
Last year, recycling containers were placed in the park for drink containers resulting in a 16 percent drop in the amount of waste sent to the landfill.
