Salem Conference Center Named Pilot Program For Allied Waste's Food Waste Recycling

April 22, 2010 - PRLog -- The Salem Conference Center is currently involved in a pilot program with Allied Waste to divert food waste such as fruits and vegetables, meat and seafood, and bread and pasta out of the waste stream and into the recycling stream.

Our cooperation with Allied Waste in this new venture will enable them to perfect their collection and composting processes and pave the way for other Salem businesses.
Allied Waste’s composting facility near Corvallis was granted Oregon’s first temporary permit to compost type 3 feedstock (food waste including meat, dairy, and bread).  In March they expect to have a permanent permit from DEQ enabling them to accept food waste from commercial and residential sources.  

Food waste recycling has been conducted successfully in Washington and California but without an appropriate facility in Oregon, this type of recycling has been limited to a small number of commercial participants in Portland since the material had to be transported all the way to Washington.

Background on the Pacific Regional Composting facility (PRC)

The PRC has been recycling wood waste and composting yard debris for almost 20 years.  Last year the DEQ granted our facility a temporary permit to compost type 3 feedstock (food waste including meat, dairy, and bread).   In March we expect to have a permanent permit from DEQ enabling us to accept food waste from commercial and residential sources.  This permit means our site and operating procedures are appropriate to handle the food waste composting in an environmentally sound manner.  As a company, our primary objective is to create quality,  nutrient rich compost in a manner that poses absolutely no nuisance to our neighbors or surrounding community.

- Oregon DEQ data found that almost 15% of the material landfilled in Oregon is food waste so this represents an excellent opportunity to increase our State’s recycling rate.

- Benefits of compost—it improves soil health and structure, increasing drought resistance, as well as reducing, and even eliminating, the need for supplemental water, fertilizers, and pesticides.

To view more about the process of food waste recycling, and the participants in this program please view this video: http://www.livingcultureonline.com/

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The SCC is designed and built to reflect the natural beauty and relaxed lifestyle of Oregon's Willamette Valley. You'll find complete, on-site catering services, state-of-the-art technology and a facility-wide Wi-Fi network.