Special Notice / Hearing: None__
Vote Required: Majority
To: Honorable Board of Supervisors
From: Carolyn Bloede, Director, Office of Sustainability
Subject: Application and Acceptance of Grant Funding from the California Department of Resources, Recycling, and Recovery for Senate Bill 1383 Local Assistance
RECOMMENDATION:
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Adopt a resolution authorizing:
A) The Office of Sustainability to apply for and accept all available SB 1383 Local Assistance funds from the California Department of Resources, Recycling, and Recovery for which San Mateo County is eligible for the period of February 22, 2022 through February 22, 2027; and
B) The Director of the Office of Sustainability or the Director’s designee to approve and/or execute all applications, agreements, amendments, payment requests, and other documents necessary to secure SB 1383 Local Assistance funds, implement approved grant funded projects, and carry out related duties and responsibilities for the period from February 22, 2022 through February 22, 2027.
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BACKGROUND:
In September 2016, California Senate Bill 1383 (Lara, Chapter 395, Statutes of 2016), also known as SB 1383, established statewide emissions reduction targets for short-lived climate pollutants such as methane. Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas, which results from the landfilling of organic waste. SB 1383 requires the State to reduce the amount of organic waste disposed of in landfills by 75 percent from 2014 levels by 2025. Given that SB 1383 includes statewide targets, the California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, also known as CalRecycle, proposed regulations that require a more prescriptive approach for local jurisdictions to achieve specific requirements for reducing the amount of organic waste, such as food waste, that goes to landfill.
To meet these requirements, the Office of Sustainability developed programs and policies to achieve compliance with CalRecycle regulations and milestones across unincorporated San Mateo County, for the Board’s consideration. On December 7, 2021, the Board adopted Ordinance No. 4857 adding Chapter 4.106, Establishing an Edible Food Recovery Program, to the San Mateo County Ordinance Code and adopted Ordinance No. 4856 amending Chapter 4.04, Solid Waste Collection, Transport, Storage and Disposal, of the San Mateo County Ordinance Code. These actions position the County to meet the requirements of SB 1383 for the unincorporated areas of the county. With these two items, the County made significant progress towards compliance with SB 1383, and meeting the accelerated timeline required by CalRecycle.
DISCUSSION:
On January 4, 2022, CalRecycle released and started accepting applications for a non-competitive SB 1383 Local Assistance Grant program (Grant), where $57 million in funds will be disbursed to all approved applicants on a per capita basis. The goal of the Grant is to provide one-time aid to local jurisdictions in the implementation of the SB 1383 regulations. Eligible activities and costs for the Grant include:
- Organic waste processing capacity planning
- Collection of organic waste
- Edible food recovery activities
- Education and outreach
- Enforcement and inspection
- Procurement of required recycled organic waste products
- Program evaluation/gap analysis
The Grant includes a minimum base award of $20,000 for each approved applicant and additional funding allocated per capita. If the County’s application is approved, the estimated funding available to the County is $86,000. Staff intends to use this funding to enhance current organic waste collection infrastructure and to support development of a procurement compliance program. As part of the application process, the County is required to submit a resolution approved by the governing Board authorizing the submission of the application.
County Counsel has reviewed and approved the resolution as to form.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no Net County Cost associated with the adoption of the resolution.