compost
Credit: Joke vander Leij/Pixabay
New York City's compost project ends due to budget cuts
Mayor Eric Adams' budget cuts have ended New York City's 30-year-old composting program, affecting community farms, gardens, and green jobs.
In short:
- The NYC Compost Project, which began in 1993, provided compost for community farms, gardens, and street trees.
- The budget cuts have forced most composting organizations to cease operations, with only three remaining open at reduced capacity.
- More than 115 green jobs are threatened, and important community connections and green education efforts are at risk.
Key quote:
"[Volunteering with Nurture BK] made me for the first time experience a community I’ve been living in for 15 years. And Eric Adams has come by and destroyed all that for me."
— Justin Realmuto, Nurture BK volunteer
Why this matters:
The composting program, established to divert organic waste from landfills, has played a pivotal role in enriching urban soil, supporting local agriculture, and reducing the city’s carbon footprint. Community gardens and farms have particularly benefited from the nutrient-rich compost, which has fostered greener, more productive spaces in neighborhoods across the city.
Critics of the budget cuts argue that dismantling the composting program is a step backward in the fight against climate change and urban sustainability. They emphasize that the program's elimination undermines efforts to build a greener, more self-sufficient New York, highlighting the broader implications for community health and environmental justice.
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Future cities to harness power and resources from wastewater
Innovative technologies are transforming wastewater into drinking water, compost, and energy, revolutionizing urban resource management.
In short:
- Companies like Epic Cleantec are developing systems to recycle gray water for non-potable uses and extract energy from wastewater.
- Advanced purification techniques are enabling cities like San Diego to convert wastewater into drinking water.
- Wastewater recycling is becoming essential for urban sustainability, especially in rapidly growing cities facing water stress due to climate change.
Key quote:
"We’re turning wastewater—which in my opinion, is a term that is in dire need of a rebrand—into clean water, into renewable energy, and into soil."
— Aaron Tartakovsky, cofounder and CEO of Epic Cleantec
Why this matters:
The shift toward recycling wastewater is a crucial step in addressing the increasing water demands of urban populations and the challenges posed by climate change. These innovative solutions not only conserve water but also create new resources, demonstrating a sustainable approach to city planning and environmental management.
Read: Expert ecologist William H. Schlesinger on what happens to all the modern, exotic compounds when we flush them into the environment.
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