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Name
Leslie Lukacs
Title
Director, Zero Waste Sonoma
Bio
Leslie Lukacs is the Executive Director of Zero Waste Sonoma formally known as the Sonoma County Waste Management Agency. Leslie has worked over 20 years in solid waste and resource management industry and, prior, was the Director of Zero Waste at SCS Engineers for 13 years. Leslie serves on the board of directors of NRC and the Zero Waste International Alliance and is an advisor to Zero Waste USA and CRRA. She is the founder of stakeholder groups including the (GIVE) Council, Compost Coalition of Sonoma County, Sonoma County Zero Waste Task Force, and the Zero Waste North Bay Symposium.
Compostable Products: The Benefits and Challenges to Organics Processing Systems
Before signing an organics processing contract, and before design and construction of the facility itself, Zero Waste Sonoma (ZWS) staff evaluated the advantages and disadvantages of accepting compostable products as feedstock. The process took over a year as we met and spoke with various stakeholders locally in California and elsewhere around the country, including business end users, composters, solid waste consultants, local government agencies, haulers, as well as a compostable products manufacturer and compostable resin manufacturer. All the information collected eventually helped to inform ZWS's board decision to hold off on accepting products containing any compostable plastics. Instead, the board directed us to continue negotiations with our organics processor, asking them to design flexibility into the facility so that compostable plastic products can be accepted in the future if need be. In the meantime, ZWS is pushing for better labeling legislation for compostable and petroleum-based plastics. This presentation will share research on the topic and review the benefits and challenges of compostable products in organics processing systems.
Compostable Products: The Benefits and Challenges to Organics Processing Systems
Before signing an organics processing contract, and before design and construction of the facility itself, Zero Waste Sonoma (ZWS) staff evaluated the advantages and disadvantages of accepting compostable products as feedstock. The process took over a year as we met and spoke with various stakeholders locally in California and elsewhere around the country, including business end users, composters, solid waste consultants, local government agencies, haulers, as well as a compostable products manufacturer and compostable resin manufacturer. All the information collected eventually helped to inform ZWS's board decision to hold off on accepting products containing any compostable plastics. Instead, the board directed us to continue negotiations with our organics processor, asking them to design flexibility into the facility so that compostable plastic products can be accepted in the future if need be. In the meantime, ZWS is pushing for better labeling legislation for compostable and petroleum-based plastics. This presentation will share research on the topic and review the benefits and challenges of compostable products in organics processing systems.
