Frequently Asked Questions

Senate Bill 1383 (SB1383) is a state mandate effective January 2022 aimed at reducing organic waste disposal by 75% and diverting 20% of excess food to those in need.
Organic waste makes up half of the waste in landfills across the state. Reducing organic waste will have the fastest impact on the climate crisis.  
To learn more about SB1383, visit CalRecycle:  https://calrecycle.ca.gov/Organics/SLCP/

The state mandate applies to all jurisdictions in the State of California. Jurisdictional waivers apply only to areas with high elevation, above 4500ft, or low population; <75 residents per square mile. Some areas of the county meet the waiver requirements due to high elevation and low population.  Those areas do not have access to WM curbside service. 

Yes, if you subscribe to curbside collection service with WM, we are required to provide you with a 3-cart system: solid waste, recycling and food/green waste.

If you do not subscribe to WM collection service and self haul your waste to the McCourtney Road Transfer Station, you can compost at home. 
The organic or food waste that you do not compost should be separated from your regular trash and hauled in separate containers to the McCourtney Road Transfer Station. 

If you are part of a neighborhood collection area or community stop, you will have the option to subscribe based on space availability at your collection site.
If you chose not to have the green cart, you will still need to separate your organic waste from your regular waste and self-haul it to the McCourtney Road Transfer Station or another approved facility.

If you already have a green cart for yard waste, then you will not get a new cart for the food waste program. 
You can now sort your food waste into the green cart along with your yard waste. 

• If critters are getting into your waste can already, we suggest continuing the same practice with your Food Waste Collection cart. Options may include storing the cart in an outbuilding or freezing the waste until pick-up day. Remember to only throw away the organics and not the plastic bags. Please do not use ammonia, pine sol, or other chemicals on the waste. Baking soda is acceptable. 
• We find critters don't like the yard waste when it is mixed with food waste in your cart. Mixing both in your organics cart can keep the bears away. 
• WM will have the option to add a gravity lock to your cart, which can keep the critters out but is not bear proof guaranteed. You will need to request the lock through WM customer service. There is an  associated fee for the installation of the lock.  

You should put yard waste and food waste in the cart. Items that cannot go in the cart are plastics, raw meats, liquids such as orange juice or vegetable oils, products that would normally go in the blue recycling bin, waxed paper or cardboard, cat litter or animal waste, and invasive weeds. For more information, check out the Waste Sorting Guide or visit the dedicated food waste page at nevadacountyca.gov/organics 

Compostable bags are not allowed in the green food waste cart. Compostable bags are considered plastic. They don't breakdown quick enough to turn into compost. 

The food waste that is collected in your green cart and picked up by WM will be brought to a Ostrom Organics facility in Wheatland.  The material is sorted, ground, aerated, and cured. In 12 weeks, the organic material is converted into compost. In 12 weeks, the compostable plastic bags will not breakdown.

 You can store your food waste in a compostable bag but will have to dump the food waste out into the green cart and dispose of the bag into your regular black waste cart.

Yes, the cost will vary by cart size and whether you have existing green waste service or not. The increase covers the cost of weekly collection service for the green cart. Please refer to our webpage for pricing details. 

Yes, the rate is effective January 2025, for seniors, 62yrs or older Or low income residents.  The discount will only apply to the 35gallon cart. You will need to apply for the rate with WM using this application. For more question,  reach out to WM by email: nevadacountyorganics@wm.com or visit their local office at 13083 Grass Valley Ave, Grass Valley between 9am and 3pm Monday through Friday. They are closed for lunch from 12-1pm.  You can also access their local webpage: www.wm.com/us/en/location/ca/nevada-county/trash-pickup-nevada-county-ca

Food soiled paper goods such as napkins, paper towels or cardboard can go into the food waste cart. Some paper plates may also go into the cart as long as they don't have a shiny waxy coating. Food soiled pizza boxes can also go into the green food waste cart. If you use a paper towel to clean a counter or surface with cleaning chemicals, please do not put the paper towel in the green cart. 
It should be disposed of in the regular trash can.

Senate Bill 1383 requires the County to provide a 3-bin collection services to all residents and businesses in unincorporated Nevada County.  
The new 3 bin service will require food and organic waste to be sorted and disposed of separately. 

How does your business comply?

• Subscribe to collection service with WM (Waste Management). If your business is a food facility regulated by Nevada County Environmental Health, you can work with WM to coordinate a pick up schedule and the appropriate number of carts for the volume of organic waste.
• Self-haul organic waste to the McCourtney Road Transfer Station or other approved facility. If you chose to self-haul, you must complete the self hauler form for alternate compliance  to comply with the regulations. You must agree to keep associated self-hauling records including receipts or weight tickets with details of material recycling and have available for inspection by County staff.
• If you business does not generate organic waste or your business lacks space for the additional cart, you may be eligible for a waiver.  
  • DeMinimis Waiver: 
    • If your business generates two (2) cubic yards of solid waste or less per week, including less than 10 gallons of organic waste 
    • If your business generates two (2) cubic yards of solid waste or more per week, including less than 20 gallons of organic waste
  • Physical Space Waiver:
    • If the commercial business or property owner provides documentation demonstrating that the premises lack adequate space for any organic waste collection containers (in front and back of house). Must be verified by County staff with documentation from licensed architect or engineer
• The waiver, if approved, does not waive the business from disposing of organic waste separately. Organic waste will still need to be separated and disposed of separately by either composting or self-hauling or another alternate method.

If you think you qualify for a waiver, complete the waiver application. Once completed, the application will be forwarded to Solid Waste staff for review. A site inspection by Solid Waste staff is required as part of the waiver process to ensure site conditions comply with SB1383 regulations.  For questions, reach out to the Solid Waste Division at 530-265-7111 or by email.

Additional Resources:
Commercial SB1383 Requirements
Commercial Waiver Application
Self Hauler Compliance Application

The primary goal of SB1383 is to keep organic waste out of the landfill. Another way business can help achieve that goal is to donate excess food that is safe for human consumption to those in need. SB1383 establishes two tiers of commercial food generators that must arrange for recovery of this excess food. 

Tier 1 Commercial Edible Food Generators 
Effective January 1, 2022

• Supermarkets;
• Grocery stores with a total facility size equal to or greater than 10,000 square feet;
• Food service providers;
• Food distributors; and
• Wholesale food vendors.

Tier 2 Commercial Edible Food Generators
Effective January 1, 2024

• Restaurants with 250 or more seats, or a total facility size equal to or greater than 5,000 square feet;
• Hotels with an on‐site food facility and 200 or more rooms;
• Health facilities with an on‐site food facility and 100 or more beds;
• Large venues;
• Large events;
•  State agencies with a cafeteria with 250 or more seats or total cafeteria facility size equal to or greater than 5,000 square feet; and   
• Local education agency facilities with an on‐site food facility.

If your business meets the one of the tiers, you will need to secure a contract or agreement with an Edible Food Recovery Organizaton to recover the maximum amount of edible food that would otherwise be discarded. Sample agreements can be found on the the CalRecycle's Food Recovery site. Maintain records of each agreement along with quantities and types of foods donated to the organization. At your annual health inspection with an Environmental Health Specialist, they will ask how you are complying with the Edible Food Recovery portion of SB1383

Local Food Recovery Organizations:

• Placer County Food Bank
• Sierra Community House
• Interfaith Food Ministry
• Nevada County Food Bank

 For more information, visit Calrecycle's Food Recovery site or reach out to Nevada County Solid Waste by phone at 530.265.7111 or email.