FOOD WASTE COLLECTION PROGRAM

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Polytechnique is the lead consultant for the implementation of a full-scale food waste collection program (FWCP) at John Wayne Airport. The airport’s primary objective is to comply with Assembly Bill 1826, which mandates maximizing the recycling and diversion of organic wastes away from landfills and, in turn, reduce greenhouse gas generation.

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Polytechnique conducted a waste characterization study in 2016, which revealed that 30 percent of the Terminal waste is food. The airport tasked Polytechnique with the following scope of services:

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• Preparing presentation materials and delivering training sessions

• Developing and posting signs for kitchens and waste collection areas

• Deploying food collection bins and bags

• Monitoring progress of waste reduction

• Working with janitorial contractors to improve compliance

• Summarizing findings and recommendations in a technical memorandum

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In the first 4 months of implementation, our team saw a 10-fold increase in the amount of collected food waste. The airport’s waste hauler processes the food waste into a slurry that is used to generate biofuel through anaerobic digestion. The FWCP has helped John Wayne Airport exceed the current organics diversion requirements.