increasing the capacity to haul the feedstock and the finished product and increasing processing capacity because the “volumes of food waste in our city is higher than our current capacity…." Some customers may not trust the finished product, others want it bagged or in small quantities, and others do not perceive the value of the product, thus decreasing demand. Lack of large markets for compost is a hurdle that must be overcome to handle potential over-supply issues as more residents’ access food waste separation services. Inexpensive landfill tipping fees limit waste haulers’ motivation to offer food scrap separation services, thus inhibiting the growth of hauling/pick up services so that access remains stagnant. On-going issues with contamination due to ‘compostable’ serve ware and confusion about what can be composted increases the costs to producers who then pass on the cost to consumers. Other infrastructure barriers include lack of access to pickup/hauling services, having sufficient space to compost at home or where to store a third waste bin for pick up services, and determining where to begin offering services for the most impactful results. Finally, the technology we use to manage, make, and use compost may be outdated and be the root cause of some of the infrastructure barriers such as policies and permitting costs that inhibit the development and placement of new compost facilities. These policies and eventual placements can lead to inequities and environmental justice concerns. Finally, it was generally recognized that the labor needed to produce compost, especially on a smaller scale, is more than most people are willing to do. One comment summed it up as "Composting must be as easy as consumption in order to include those w/ multiple challenges in their lives +limited resources."
A list of comments on Barriers to Infrastructure are displayed in Table 2, Appendix 1.
POLICY barriers were difficult to break down into categories. An effort was made to convene compost experts— those who had experience composting, advocating for better compost policy, researchers, nonprofits, etc. However, many barriers listed under policy reflect a collective frustration that policy in both the City of Chicago and the region is opaque and uneven. Policy that does exist is hard to understand and disseminate. Residents (and even experts) who don’t know or understand policies that currently exist interpret this as lack of government support. Many comments that were listed as policy barriers were about what kinds of policies should exist as people leapt ahead to thinking about opportunities. Lack of institutional support and awareness , funding to support policy, and inflexible contracts are barriers that could be overcome if awareness and knowledge of the benefits of composting were more widely understood by both the general public and elected officials as there is "not enough knowledge about policies and procedures about the importance and value of recycling in urban communities." Attendees also felt that there was a lack of enforcement of existing policies such as the 1990 ban on yard waste in Illinois landfills . Ultimately, attendees noted "(we) need to inform our elected officials on the basics of composting and its importance" and that "the responsibility of food waste diversion shouldn't be fully placed on individuals/households. It’s a policy issue!" It is not the purpose of this report to conclude whether government support for composting exists in the region. However, many Summit attendees wish to see stronger, clearer compost policies and have those policies be enforced. A list of comments on Barriers to Policy are displayed in Table 3, Appendix 1.
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