Article 42. Citizen Petition: Proposed Composting Rate Payer Plan

ARTICLE 42. To urge the Town will adopt and negotiate a ratepayer composting plan for households and commercial buildings, through a pre-existing organic waste disposal company, or act on anything relative thereto.

Article Explanation

This article urges the Town to evaluate a public-private partnership with a composting company with the purpose of negotiating a ratepayer plan for town-wide adoption. This type of preferred vendor model is a low-cost option where implementation and management can be handled by the vendor and tailored to our Town's needs, similar to the existing trash and recycling model.

Adopting this plan aligns with Massachusetts' broader environmental mandates, as the state aims for a 90% waste diversion goal in anticipation of all in-state landfills reaching maximum capacity limits by 2030. Currently, food waste accounts for over 21% of all trash disposed of in the Commonwealth—totaling 930,000 tons annually—leading the Department of Environmental Protection to designate it as a top priority for diversion.

By establishing a formal composting program, Concord can leverage existing state resources and follow the successful lead of neighboring communities like Bedford, Lexington, and Arlington. Bedford recently found that participating households divert an average of 9.51 pounds of food waste per week from the trash stream.

Furthermore, this initiative supports Concord's Climate Action and Resilience Plan, which calls for the Town to "create opportunities town-wide to increase the waste diversion rate by 30%." We are asking the Town to further research this option to help our community reach local and state sustainability goals.

Article Motion

Ms. Karlin moves that the Town take affirmative action on Article 42: To urge the town to adopt and negotiate a ratepayer composting plan for households and commercial buildings, through a pre-existing organic waste disposal company.