Iowans' Garbage Contains 50 Percent More Food Than In 2011

DES MOINES, IA — Iowans have thrown away more than 556,000 tons of food in the past year, and wasted food accounted for one-fifth of all items that made it to an Iowa landfill, a new study by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources found.

The 2017 Iowa Statewide Waste Characterization Study, conducted from May to July and released this month, looked at what types of trash, recyclables and compostable items made it to a landfill. Findings from the study, which is conducted every six years, are used to identify potential initiatives and programs that will help reduce the amount of waste generated and headed to landfills.

The study looked at materials received at 15 Iowa landfills and solid waste transfer stations — including the Metro Park East Landfill in eastern Polk County and its Northwest and Central transfer stations — the that were sorted into 61 separate categories within nine material types. They also made a distinction between residential trash and industrial and commercial waste.

The amount of food wasted was a 50 percent increase from the previous study in 2011.

The second biggest category of tossed items was plastic film, plastic wrap and bags, which increased by 15 percent from the previous study.

But there was good news in at least one category: The amount of corrugated cardboard, recycled in many community curbside programs, dropped by about 50 percent since 2011.

The DNR reported that the study also looked at the economic impact of diverting recyclable paper, plastic, metal and glass — commonly collected through curbside and drop-off recycling programs — from landfills. Regional market prices at the time of the study indicated that paper and containers that made it to the landfill were valued at more than $60 million.

“Should these materials be diverted, processed and sold to the manufacturing sector for the production of new products, it’s estimated nearly 6,000 jobs could be created,” said Tom Anderson with the DNR’s Land Quality Bureau.

Funding for the study was provided by a portion of the solid waste tonnage fee through the Solid Waste Alternatives Program. The full report can be found at www.iowadnr.gov/FABA under Studies & Reports.

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