Colorado city passes ordinance to reduce C&D waste

The city of Aspen, Colorado, has passed an ordinance addressing the disposal of construction and demolition (C&D) debris, Aspen Daily News reports.

The ordinance would require C&D projects with a disturbance area of 2,000 square feet or more to divert 100 percent of all possible recoverable materials from the Pitkin County Landfill and Solid Waste Center, and could result in salvaging thousands of tons of reusable products from the landfill, city officials say. The Aspen City Council approved the ordinance on first reading during a Dec. 17 meeting.

The ordinance aims to help the city reach its goal of reducing carbon emissions by 63 percent by 2030 and reducing the amount of waste at the landfill by 70 percent by 2050, according to the story.

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About 16 percent of the city’s annual greenhouse gas emissions are related to the generation of waste at the landfill, the city’s waste diversion and recycling program administrator Ainsley Brosnan-Smith tells the Daily News. More than half of the total materials buried at the landfill are C&D debris. Of the 53 percent of C&D debris materials found in the landfill, more than half is locally salvageable and usable, Brosnan-Smith says.

Qualifying projects would be required to recycle 100 percent of recoverable materials, defined as what the landfill can accept as recycling. This would include such materials as concrete and porcelain, organics, asphalt, corrugated cardboard, rock and dirt, untreated lumber and pallets, metal appliances and scrap metal.

The council will review the ordinance on second reading during a Jan. 13 meeting. If approved, the ordinance would go into effect within 30 days of the meeting.