PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • February 5, 2024
State lawmakers say it’s time for Maine pass a law to keep food scraps out of the trash – an act supporters claim would reduce food insecurity, save towns and cities money, and slow climate change. In 2022, almost 60,000 tons of food waste was sent to rot in Maine landfills, producing more than 2,000 tons of methane, a greenhouse gas that is more than 28 times as potent as carbon dioxide at trapping heat in the atmosphere. A bill, which was endorsed by a legislative committee earlier this month, would phase in a limited ban on the landfilling or incinerating of food waste. It would require non-agricultural commercial producers in populated areas to donate edible leftovers and recycle their food scraps.