Cafeteria Organic Collections Program

NYC Schools Secondary Education

Why Collect Organics?

 On average, about 40% of NYC School’s

waste stream is organic

It is expensive to transport and store this

material in landfills, taking up valuable

land.

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Average Waste per year,American family of four4.4 lbs per person, every day

NYC generates 64,000 tons of waste every week

$300 Million= Over 13,000 NYC student's tuition to SUNY for all four years, plus book $$$

Exporting trash Exports jobs and moneyOut of NYC

Exporting Waste Cost NYC:

$300 million

$300 Million= over 750,000 IPad 2’s with Wi-Fi 16GB

Food scraps, when put in a

landfill, increase greenhouse gases.

Landfills are the single largest man-made source of methane

gas in the U.S.

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Collecting Organics Reduces GHG

NYC pilot reduced schools’ cafeteria waste by 85%. Imagine city

wide.

Will Collecting Organics Make a Difference?

What Happens to Collected Organics?

Organics are taken to commercial facilities to make compost, or to make renewable energy by capturing the methane gas released in decomposition

Newtown Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant in Brooklyn

DSNY Commercial Composting Facility

What is Compost?• When we break down organic, or once living

material, faster than it would in nature.• Creates a chocolate colored dirt that gives

plants nutrients • “Decomposers” in the soil like micro-organisms,

organisms, and worms break down organics. They are nature’s recyclers.

Introducing…

the Organics Collection

Please take food out of foil, wrappers and bagsbefore composting

Please Bring ALL Cafeteria Waste

to the Sorting Station(s)

Sort it Out. It’s Easy.

AddALL food scraps

food soiled paper

AddALL food scraps

food soiled paper

Remove Landfill trash

Remove Landfill trash

Recycle Cartons, cans, bottles, & all hard plastics

Recycle Cartons, cans, bottles, & all hard plastics

Pour Any liquids into bucket

Pour Any liquids into bucket

Step 1:

Pour Liquids

into Bucket

Step 2:Recycle

Cartons, Cans, Bottles, Foil,

and Hard Plastics

Step 3: Remove

TrashPlastic Bags,

Film, Wrappers, and Foam

Step 4: Add

Organics Food ScrapsFiber Trays

Paper Boats, Cups

Plates and Napkins

Sorting in Four Easy Steps

Remember to Recycle All Beverage Cartons, Cans and Bottles

And aluminum foil

• Take-out containers • Plastic utensils• Fruit & pudding cups • Yogurt , dairy, deli & clamshell containers

FoamFilmVinyl WrappersBagsPouches

Recycle ALL Rigid (Hard) Plastics?

Remove Trash and put into Landfill Bin

Add ALL Leftover Food Scraps to the Organics Bin

Add All Food Soiled Paperand Fiber Trays to the Organics Bin

Teach Sustainability: Become a Cafeteria Monitor

Community Service HoursGain Job SkillsInclude onCollege Applications

Drop off at Green Markets

Curbside Collection

Pilot Collection for Apartments

School Gardens

Community Gardens

Organics Collection is Growing in NYC

Recycling and compostingat Yankee Stadium decreased waste by 40 percent.

What would increase recycling and composting at this school?

Get in the Game