Organic Resource Locator
Organic material continues to be the largest component of the municipal solid waste (MSW) stream in the United States1, with a significant portion of the landfilled organic material being food.2 In fact, it is estimated that 40 percent of all food produced for U.S. consumption ends up in our waste stream, which represents an enormous amount of lost resources.3
Not only does organic waste end up in landfills, occupying valuable space, it also releases methane gas, a greenhouse gas 28 times more powerful than CO2.4 At the same time, organic waste can provide a valuable resource to feed the hungry, feed animals or be converted to clean, renewable energy and other valuable products.
ORL is currently under maintenance and will be back online soon.
The Organic Resource Locator (ORL), developed by NYSP2I, is a web-based mapping tool that provides information on organic waste resources and utilization pathways in New York State. The goal of the Organic Resource Locator is to enable efficient and increased utilization of organic resources by connecting producers of organics with those who have a use for them, diverting a valuable resource from our landfills. NYSP2I hopes this effort will help reduce environmental impacts, promote economic development and encourage the development of green technologies.
Acronym Key
- CAFO (Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations): Simply put, these are agricultural enterprises where a large number of animals are confined to a single site for over 45 days during the year. For the exact definition, visit the USDA website.
- BUD (Beneficial Use Determinations): These are resources that have been approved by the NYSDEC to be used for a specific beneficial application rather than being treated as typical municipal waste. An example of a BUD would be the approved use of dried paper mill sludge as animal bedding.
References
Comments and Feedback
Comments and feedback are welcome. Please contact us.
Acknowledgements and Disclaimer
This Tool is an interactive resource locator map created by RIT’s NYSP2I in part to identify and help connect organic waste and resource producers with potential waste and resource users. The creation of this tool was funded by the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC). The opinions, results, findings and/or interpretations of the processed data contained herein as a part of this Tool are the responsibility of Rochester Institute of Technology and do not necessarily represent the opinions, interpretations or policy of the State. All unprocessed data and estimated waste sources used in this Tool are described and cited in the References document. Generally, the unprocessed data used for this tool was obtained from publicly available sources or commercially available sources, standard estimating practices, and individual communications with resource providers. The resulting processed data is offered here for informational purposes and as a general representation of resource availability in the region.
All parties intending to rely on this information for business, financial or regulatory commitments should confirm actual resource availability with the individual facilities listed. All business, safety, liability, or legal and compliance requirements regarding any reliance on this information for the generation, use, exchange, or transfer of the organic resources remain the responsibility of the individual users. In addition, the listed generators of organic materials in this Tool do not represent lists of entities that may, or may not, be a waste generator for the purpose of the NYS Food Donation and Food Scraps Recycling Law, the Ulster County Food Waste Prevention and Recovery Act, or any other current or future governmental regulation of any kind in New York State. Information on the applicability of the New York State Food Donation and Food Scraps Recycling law can be found on the NYS DEC website. Information on the applicability of the Ulster County Food Waste Prevention and Recovery Act can be found on the Ulster County website.
RIT and the New York State Pollution Prevention Institute (NYSP2I) cannot guarantee the accuracy, completeness, omissions, or timeliness of the information used as data inputs for this Tool, or the resulting processed data and outputs of the Tool; consequently, RIT shall not be liable for any loss or injury of any kind resulting from reliance upon the information herein, or through the use of this mapping program. The mention of a commercial business or other organization in this database does not convey official approval, endorsement, or recommendation of any kind by RIT, NYSP2I, or NYSDEC.
