Last week, the DC City Council unanimously passed two key pieces of legislation: a styrofoam ban by food service businesses and a waste modernization bill. ILSR helped win passage of both bills in collaboration with many environmental and civic groups. Neither bill is perfect but necessary for future development of zero waste programs in the District. The styrofoam ban, Title IV of a larger Sustainable DC Omnibus Amendment Act of 2014, goes into effect January 2016, with additional requirements for foodservice ware to be recyclable or compostable by January 2017. It makes DC the first City in the Mid-Atlantic to ban styrofoam. The modernization bill – the Sustainable Solid Waste Management Amendment Act of 2014 – calls for a zero waste plan to achieve an 80% waste diversion goal, a collection program for compostable material, and more.
Photo Courtesy: Sierra Club DC Chapter
