A communication transmitted from Yi-An Huang, City Manager, relative to proposed changes to the City's Zero Waste Master Plan.  TABLED IN COUNCIL JUNE 1, 2026

May 26, 2026 City Council Health & Environment Committee Hearing

Agenda Introductions Progress on ZWMP 2.0 Ordinance Changes required to advance ZWMP 2.0

City of Cambridge Zero Waste Goals 3 • Established in 2009 • Measured in pounds/household/week • Goals: • 30% trash reduction by 2020 • 50% reduction by 2030 • 80% reduction by 2050 • As of 2025, we have reduced trash 37%

4 12,946 14,923 13,881 13,069 12,604 12,631 12,495 - 2,000 4,000 6,000 8,000 10,000 12,000 14,000 16,000 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 Tons Calendar Year Residential Waste Collected by Calendar Year Recycling Food Waste Yard waste Other Diversion* Trash *Other Diversion= Scrap metal, textiles, e-waste

ZWMP 2.0 Implementation 5

• ZWMP 2.0 adopted by City Council in June 2025 • Includes: 5 short-term strategies, 5 medium and long-term, and 8 ongoing strategies • Today: Provide updates to strategies that we have made progress on. 6 ZWMP 2.0

• Pop-up Recycle Center events. Funded by Participatory Budgeting • 4/22 and 5/20 at Tobin School, former Kennedy-Longfellow School. • Next 3 events: 6/3, 7/1 and 7/29. 7 Strategy 5: Improve Accessibility to the Recycle Center • Intend to move the permanent Recycle Center from the back to the front of the DPW Yard by May 2027.

• June 2025: MassDEP grant to pilot a waste reduction pilot for move-out waste. • Although a successful pilot in many respects, we are working on whether we can scale it to make meaningful trash reductions. 8 Strategy 3: Reduce Move-in/Move-out waste

June 2025 Free Store event, organized by the Recycling Advisory Committee 9

April 18 Finished Compost Giveaway 10 Strategy #11: Host educational events and workshops on reduce & reuse topics May 9 Fix It Clinic

11 Other Outreach Efforts

12 Strategy #12: Conduct waste composition studies every three years Compostables, 34% Recycling, 16% Other , 5% “Trash”, 45% 2025 Trash Characterization Compostables Recycling (electronics, textiles, scrap metal) “Trash”

• 2025 MassDEP Commission. Through advocacy, the final report recommended Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) legislation for electronics, paint, mattresses, and batteries. • If passed, these laws could help make recycling easier and less expensive to municipalities. 13 Strategy #13: Collaborate with local and statewide initiatives

• Cambridge is only City in MA to provide waste services to buildings with >13 households. • 20,150 households in 415 buildings receive at least one waste service from DPW. • To improve compliance with policies and to efficiently administer programs, we need a better method to communicate with buildings • 8.24.070E: Owners of residential (>13 units) and commercial (>25,000 sq. ft) buildings are required to submit Zero Waste Plans. Contents of Plan: • Contact info for owner or property manager, • Name of waste collection vendor(s), • Volumes of recyclables, compostables and trash collected weekly, • Procedure for handling other materials requiring recycling (i.e. mattresses, textiles) • How owner is educating their tenants to comply with Ordinance. 14 Strategy #1: Zero Waste Plans for large residential & commercial buildings

• 8.24.070B: Mandatory separation of recyclable materials, compostable materials, and other recoverable materials (textiles, mattresses, yard waste) from trash. • Reasons to consider making the program mandatory: • The program can reduce: Costs, Rodent activity, and Climate impact, • Food Waste is 34% of our trash, • Stay ahead of proposed State ban on residential food waste by 2030. • DPW has invested heavily & now’s the time to take the next step 15 Strategy #2: Require food waste diversion citywide

16 $145 $85 $91 $0 $20 $40 $60 $80 $100 $120 $140 $160 2014 2018 2025 Disposal Fee for Cambridge Waste Trash Food Waste Recycle

Food Waste Carts 17

Case Study 18 After separating food waste from trash: • No rodent activity on property for last 3 months • 25% reduction in plumber calls • “Loading dock has become much safer for restaurant and building staff to use and a cleaner, more pleasant place for all.” • Mass Ave building; ground-floor restaurant and 100+ condos. • Before separating food waste:  Daily sightings of rats on the loading dock  Residents were upset about rodents throughout the property • Both the residents and restaurant started separating food scraps from trash dumpster in 2024.

• Actively changing name of program to “Food Waste Program” 19 Strategy #2: Food Waste

Other Solid Waste Ordinance Changes • Updating definitions to align with current waste programs, • Food waste, textiles and mattresses required to be kept out of the trash, • Yard waste, TVs, appliances, and recyclables are currently banned. • Property owners on City’s waste programs must: • Use City-issued receptacles, keep lids closed, and label with their address, • Request replacements within 15 days if broken (Owners may be charged a fee to replace rodent-chewed carts). • Each household entitled to 45 gallons of trash per week. • Average household generates 23 gallons per week (after separating food waste and recyclables), • One overflow trash bag per household per week is allowed, • Overflow bag setout time is changing from midnight to 5:00 a.m. on collection day. • Updating requirements of private haulers to assist in compliance. 20

• 8.72: Skip the Stuff Ordinance: • 8.72.020(a): Accessory Disposable Food Ware Items shall be provided only upon request by the customer or at self-serve stations 21 Strategy #4: Reduce waste from Food Establishments

Case Study Burger shop in Oakland, CA saw $2,100 annual savings with operational change and addition of signage to encourage waste reduction Before After Source: Rethinkdisposable.Org

• Update to 8.68: Bring Your Own Bag Ordinance: 8.68.050A: Only paper or compostable bags allowed 23 Strategy #4: Reduce waste from Food Establishments No plastic bags allowed to be sold at checkout.

• November 2025: Curbside recycling contractor (Casella) introduced two EV trucks • April 2026: City receives 4th EV collection truck 24 Other Relevant Updates

• DPW proposes that all draft changes to Chapters 8.24, 8.68, and 8.72 would take effect 6 months after enactment by City Council. • Enforcement of Chapter 8.24 to start 6 months after it goes into effect • Enforcement of Chapter 8.68 and 8.72 to start after Ordinances take effect. • Evaluation: Ongoing process. 25 Enactment of Ordinance Changes

• Evaluate a hybrid Pay-As-You-Throw program • Evaluate options to decrease the amount of bulky waste trashed (i.e. furniture) • Examine trash reduction goals for commercial trash 26 Future Work May Include:

Questions? 27 • Email: Recycle@CambridgeMA.Gov • Sign-up for Recycle Newsletter: www.CambridgeMA.Gov/Subscribe