California’s new Composting law:

Wow I saw this today in the LA Times: Californians will ring in the new year with a groundbreaking law that will change how they dispose of their organic waste, particularly leftover food and kitchen scraps.

Senate Bill 1383 requires all residents and businesses to separate such “green” waste from other trash, the program will be rolled out gradually for homes and businesses in the coming months, depending on where they are located.

Isn’t garbage just garbage? Why are California lawmakers requiring us to separate organic waste from the rest of our trash? Scientists have found that organic waste dumped into traditional landfills decomposes and creates methane, a super-pollutant with as much as 80 times the Earth-warming potency of carbon dioxide. To slow the advance of global warming, the state wants to redirect the material to composting centers or anaerobic digestion facilities, where it can help sink carbon back into the Earth or capture natural gas to — for instance — power trash trucks.