Restoring healthy soils and youth job training

Green Space, Park Access, and Trees

Pilot or new project, program, or initiative

The state faces two environmental problems-greenhouse gases produced by landfills and depleted soils. Diversion of organic waste from landfills prevents the production of methane; turning that organic waste into compost will counteract soil degradation in urban greenspaces. SB 1383 (Lara) passed in 2016 as part of California's larger strategy to combat climate change, and this law prescribes waste management practices to fight climate change's impact on Californians by recycling organic waste, including food scraps, yard trimmings, paper, and cardboard that would otherwise be dumped in landfills. Organic waste in landfills releases 20% of the state's methane, which is a climate super pollutant more deleterious than carbon dioxide, and air pollutants like PM 2.5, and this contributes to health conditions like asthma.

The Los Angeles Conservation Corps' Soils Conservation Corps offers a nature-based solution to greenhouse gases produced by landfills and depleted soils. Composting will contribute to meeting the SB 1383's goals of at least 75% reduction in the level of organic waste disposal and at least 20% of edible food being recovered by 2025. The Soils Conservation Corps supports sustainable land management practices, promotes biodiversity protection, and builds climate resilience by reducing the production of greenhouse gases. The City of LA's RegenerateLA initiative, spearheaded by LA Sanitation & Environment and LA Conservation Corps, is focused on modeling regenerative practices to improve soil health while also providing job training for youth. The objectives of RegenerateLA are to divert food waste from landfill, improve the effectiveness of community composting, improve the soil health of the City of LA, and create pipelines to jobs in the field of healthy soils. LA Conservation Corps' Soils Conservation Corps is a critical component of RegenerateLA. Corpsmembers will receive at least one year of classroom training and hands-on experience in composting as part of the Soils Conservation Corps. In addition to working at LA Compost collection sites and organic waste facilities, Corpsmembers will complete a seven-module curriculum about healthy soils, which provides policy and soil science context for the work that Corpsmembers do.

Our Healthy Soils project is an innovative way to increase the climate resilience of Los Angeles. Corpsmembers will pick up unsold produce at grocery stores, wholesale outlets, and farmers markets. Our Corpsmembers sort edible foodstuffs with MEND Food Bank to provide needed healthy sustenance to food-insecure households. Inedible organic material will be converted to nutrient-rich compost that can restore soil health across the city, being utilized on park grounds, meridians, playing fields, and other bare or landscaped City property. This initiative supports sustainable land management practices, promotes biodiversity protection, and reduces the production of greenhouse gases. Additionally, Corpsmembers will complete a seven-module curriculum about healthy soils that serves as the foundation for other specialized job skills training with industry-recognized certifications to provide entryways into careers in soil science, agriculture, food waste diversion, and waste management.

Tracking of output will use LA Compost's calculator, which factors in food waste, green waste, and manure to estimate cubic yards of compost produced, and this in turn can be converted to carbon sequestered and methane emissions reduced. Composting output will yield the amount of greenhouse gas emissions reduced. Greenhouse gas emissions reduction is measured in metric tons of carbon dioxide or equivalent (MTCO2e). One kilogram of methane emitted is equivalent to 25 kilograms of CO2e (1kg CH4 x 25 = 25kg CO2e). There are 469 square miles of greenspace controlled by the City of LA that could apply compost as an amendment to depleted soils. The plan is for compost generated by the Soils Conservation Corps and LA Compost will be used to increase microorganism biodiversity and improve the health of the soil. N.B.: The City of Los Angeles has not yet set targets for organic waste to be diverted nor for compost to be applied to depleted soils.