SB1167sam001 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Sen. Kimberly A. Lightford

Filed: 4/14/2021

10200SB1167sam001 LRB102 04982 CPF 24985 a

AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 1167

AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend Senate Bill 1167 by replacing everything after the enacting clause with the following:

"Section 5. The Environmental Protection Act is amended by adding Section 22.39 as follows:

(415 ILCS 5/22.39 new)

Sec. 22.39. Donation of excess food and recycling of food scraps.

(a) Findings and purpose.

(1) The General Assembly finds that approximately 40% of the food produced in the United States today goes uneaten. Much of this organic waste is disposed of in solid waste landfills, where its decomposition accounts for over 15% of our nation's emissions of methane, a potent greenhouse gas.

(2) Recognizing the importance of food scraps to our environment, economy, and the health of Illinoisans, this Section establishes a food scraps hierarchy for the State of Illinois. The first tier of the hierarchy is source reduction and reducing the volume of surplus food generated. The second tier is recovery and feeding wholesome food to hungry people. The third tier is repurposing and feeding animals. The fourth tier is recycling and processing any leftover food, such as by composting or anaerobic digestion, to create a nutrient-rich soil amendment.

(3) This legislation is designed to address each tier of the hierarchy by: encouraging the prevention of food waste generation by commercial generators and residents; directing the recovery of excess edible food from high-volume commercial food waste generators; and ensuring that a significant portion of inedible food waste from large volume food waste generators is managed in a sustainable manner and does not end up being sent to landfills or incinerators.

(b) In this Section:

"Designated food scraps generator" means a person who generates at a single location an annual average of 2 tons per week or more of food scraps based on a methodology established by the Agency by rule, including supermarkets, restaurants, higher educational institutions, hotels, food processors, correctional facilities, sports or entertainment venues, and health care facilities. For a location with multiple independent food service businesses, such as a mall or college campus, the entity responsible for contracting for solid waste hauling services is responsible for managing food scraps from the independent food service businesses.

"Food scraps" means inedible food, trimmings from the preparation of food, food-soiled paper, and edible food that is not donated. "Food scraps" does not include used cooking oil, yellow grease, food from residential sources, any food identified by a rule adopted by the Agency in consultation with the Department of Agriculture and markets, or any food that is subject to a recall or seizure due to the presence of pathogens, including, but not limited to, listeria monocytogenes, confirmed clostridium botulinum, Escherichia coli 0157:H7, and all salmonella, in ready-to-eat foods.

"Incinerator" means an enclosed device using controlled flame combustion, the primary purpose of which is to thermally break down solid, liquid, or gaseous combustible hazardous waste, producing residue that contains little or no combustible materials.

"Landfill" means a disposal facility or part of a facility where solid waste, including hazardous waste, is placed in or on land and that is not a land treatment facility, a surface impoundment, or an injection well.

"Organics recycler" means a facility, permitted by the Agency, that recycles food scraps through use as animal feed or a feed ingredient, rendering, land application, composting, aerobic digestion, anaerobic digestion, fermentation, or ethanol production. Animal scraps, food-soiled paper, and post-consumer food scraps are prohibited for use as animal feed or as a feed ingredient. The proportion of the product created from food scraps by a composting or digestion facility, including a wastewater treatment plant that operates a digestion facility or other treatment system, must be used in a beneficial manner as a soil amendment and shall not be disposed of or incinerated.

"Person" means any business entity, partnership, company, corporation, not-for-profit corporation, association, governmental entity, public benefit corporation, public authority, firm, or organization.

"Single location" means contiguous property under common ownership, which may include one or more buildings.

"Transfer station" means a solid waste management facility, whether owned or operated by a private or public entity, other than a recyclables handling and recovery facility, used oil facility, or a general construction or demolition debris processing facility, where solid waste is received for the purpose of subsequent transfer to another solid waste management facility for processing, treating, disposal, recovery, or further transfer.

(c) On and after January 1, 2022, the following shall apply:

(1) A designated food scraps generator shall separate the designated food scraps generator's excess edible food for donation for human consumption to the maximum extent practicable, and in accordance with applicable laws, rules, and regulations related to food donation.

(2) Except as provided in paragraph (3), each designated food scraps generator that is within 15 miles of an organics recycler, to the extent that the organics recycler has capacity to accept all of the designated food scraps generator's food scraps based on the Agency's yearly estimate of an organic recycler's capacity pursuant to subsection (j), shall:

(A) separate its remaining food scraps from other solid waste;

(B) ensure proper storage for food scraps on site that shall preclude food scraps from becoming odorous or attracting vectors, such as a container that has a lid and a latch that keeps the lid closed and is resistant to tampering by rodents or other wildlife and has sufficient capacity;

(C) have information available and provide training for employees concerning the proper methods to separate and store food scraps; and

(D) obtain a transporter that will deliver food scraps to an organics recycler, self-haul its food scraps to an organics recycler, or provide for organics recycling on-site via in-vessel composting, aerobic or anaerobic digestion, or any other method of processing organic waste that the Agency approves by rule, for some or all of the food waste it generates on its premises, provided that the remainder is delivered to an organics recycler.

(3) The provisions of paragraph (2) do not apply to any designated food scraps generator that has all of its food scraps processed in a mixed solid waste composting or mixed solid waste anaerobic digestion facility.

(d) A designated food scraps generator shall submit an annual report to the Agency on or before March 1, 2023, and annually thereafter, in an electronic format. The report must summarize the amount of edible food donated, the amount of food scraps recycled, the organics recycler or recyclers and associated transporters used, and any other information required by the Agency.

(e) A designated food scraps generator may petition the Agency for a temporary waiver from some or all of the requirements of this Section. The petition must include evidence of undue hardship based on:

(1) the designated food scraps generator not meeting the 2 tons per week threshold;

(2) the cost of processing organic waste not being reasonably competitive with the cost of disposing of waste by landfill;

(3) the organics recycler not having sufficient capacity, despite the Agency's calculation under subsection (j); or

(4) the unique circumstances of the generator.

A waiver under this subsection shall be no longer than one year in duration. However, the Agency may renew a waiver under this subsection.

(f) A waste transporter that collects food scraps for recycling from a designated food scraps generator shall:

(1) deliver the food scraps to a transfer station that will deliver the food scraps to an organics recycler, unless the designated food scraps generator has received a temporary waiver under subsection (e); or

(2) deliver the food scraps directly to an organics recycler.

A waste transporter that collects food scraps from a designated food scraps generator shall take all reasonable precautions to not deliver the food scraps to an incinerator or a landfill nor to commingle the material with any other solid waste, unless the commingled waste can be processed by an organics recycler or the designated food scraps generator has received a temporary waiver under subsection (e).

(g) A transfer station that receives food scraps from a designated food scraps generator must ensure that the food scraps are taken to an organics recycler, unless the designated food scraps generator has received a temporary waiver under subsection (e). A transfer station shall take all reasonable precautions to not commingle the material with any other solid waste unless the commingled waste can be processed by an organics recycler.

(h) An incinerator or landfill shall take all reasonable precautions to not accept food scraps from designated food scraps generators required to send food scraps to an organics recycler as outlined under subsection (c), unless the designated food scraps generator has received a temporary waiver under subsection (e).

(i) The Agency shall publish on its website:

(1) the methodology the Agency will use to determine who is a designated food scraps generator;

(2) the waiver process under subsection (e);

(3) procedures to minimize odors and vectors in order to comply with subparagraph (B) of paragraph (2) of subsection (c); and

(4) a list of all designated food scraps generators, organics recyclers, and waste transporters that manage source-separated organics.

(j) No later than June 1, 2021, and annually thereafter, the Agency shall assess the capacity of each organic recycler and notify designated food scraps generators if they are required to comply with the provisions of subsection (c).

(k) The Agency shall develop and make available educational materials to assist designated food scraps generators with complying with this Section. The Agency shall also develop education materials on food waste minimization and encourage municipalities to disseminate these materials both on their municipal websites and in any such future mailings to their residents as they may distribute.

(l) The Agency shall regulate organics recyclers to ensure that their activities do not impair water quality or otherwise harm human health and the environment.

(m) The Agency shall, after one or more public hearings, adopt rules necessary to implement the provisions of this Section, including:

(1) the methodology the Agency will use to determine who is a designated food scraps generator;

(2) the waiver process under subsection (e);

(3) procedures to minimize odors and vectors in order to comply with subparagraph (B) of paragraph (2) of subsection (c);

(4) a list of all designated food scraps generators, organics recyclers, and waste transporters that manage source-separated organics; and

(5) how designated food scraps generators shall comply with paragraph (1) of subsection (c) and subparagraph (A) of paragraph (2) of subsection (c).

(n) This Section does not apply to any designated food scraps generators located in a city with a population of 1,000,000 or more that has a local law, ordinance, or regulation in place that requires the diversion of edible food and food scraps from disposal.

(o) This Section does not apply to hospitals, elementary schools, or secondary schools.

(p) No later than January 1, 2023, and on an annual basis thereafter, the Agency shall submit a report to the Governor and the General Assembly describing the operation of the food donation and food scraps recycling program under this Section, including the amount of edible food donated, the amount of food scraps recycled, sample educational materials required under subsection (k), and the number of temporary waivers provided under subsection (e).

Section 97. Severability. The provisions of this Act are severable under Section 1.31 of the Statute on Statutes.

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.".