In November, Waste Dive reported on bans that will help preserve Massachusetts’ landfill capacity and address climate and environmental justice concerns.
- Massachusetts is expanding its list of disposal bans, according to a new solid waste master plan from the Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP). Starting in November 2022, disposal of certain textiles and mattresses, as well as organics from locations generating more than a half-ton per week, will be prohibited.
- The agency also plans to consider in 2025 whether to ban all organics from disposal by 2030. The state will also consider a “declining cap on carbon dioxide emissions from municipal waste combustors” as part of a broader goal to cut 300,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent per year from such facilities.
- Similar to its goals in a 2019 draft plan, MassDEP is aiming for a 30% reduction in waste disposal volumes by 2030 and a 90% reduction by 2050 (from a 2018 baseline). The agency delayed the release of this plan to allow for new comments around climate change, environmental justice and pandemic effects, though some critics say the plan doesn’t go far enough in these areas.
Read more in Waste Dive here.
Featured image via Wikimedia Commons.
