San Diego is making big strides in the fight against food waste, but one challenge keeps popping up: contaminants in green bins. Recently, the City of San Diego launched a two-week pilot program designed to address this issue head-on. The goal? Improve compost quality, reduce landfill waste, and move closer to California’s statewide organic waste goals under SB 1383.
Why Contaminants Are a Problem
When residents toss the wrong items into their green bins—like plastic bags, bioplastic bags, glass bottles, or treated wood—it creates major problems. These contaminants slow down the composting process, reduce the quality of finished compost, and increase costs at the Miramar Greenery, where San Diego processes its organic waste. Cleaner green bins mean better compost that can be used in parks, gardens, and agriculture.
How the Pilot Worked
In August 2025, San Diego partnered with the East County Transitional Living Center to test a new approach: manual sorting of organic waste. Workers hand-removed contaminants from food scraps, yard trimmings, and other green-bin materials before they reached the composting stage. This not only improved compost quality but also provided transitional jobs for people re-entering the workforce.
The Results So Far
While the pilot only lasted two weeks, the benefits were clear:
- Cleaner compost: Removing contaminants early helps create nutrient-rich soil products.
- Reduced inefficiencies: Sorting waste before processing saves time and resources.
- Community impact: The program supported individuals moving out of homelessness with employment opportunities.
What’s Next for San Diego
The city is preparing a multilingual education campaign to help residents understand what belongs in green bins—and what doesn’t. Education is key to reducing contamination at the source. At the same time, city leaders will use the lessons from this pilot to determine whether manual sorting or other innovations could be expanded.
Why This Matters
San Diego has already seen impressive progress in food waste recycling, diverting nearly 200,000 tons of organic waste in 2024 alone. But keeping contaminants out of green bins is essential for long-term success. Cleaner organics mean less landfill waste, more high-quality compost, and stronger momentum toward the city’s Zero Waste goals.
EcoToss Takeaway: The San Diego contaminants pilot program is a promising step toward cleaner, more effective food waste recycling. For residents, the message is simple: keep plastics, bioplastics, glass, and other trash out of your green bin. Every small effort helps turn food waste into valuable compost—and keeps San Diego’s recycling revolution moving forward.
Looking for eco-friendly tips and news on food waste recycling? Stay tuned with EcoToss for updates that make sustainability simple.
