Shikha Gupta, Solid Waste Services
On April 8, 2025, staff presented the Organics Management Feasibility Study Phase 1 Summary and Results to City Council to assess the scope of expanding processing and collections services currently offered by Solid Waste Services (SWS) to develop a sustainable food waste management solution for the City of Raleigh.
The Yard Waste Center (YWC) does not currently accept food waste for processing and there is currently no other alternative within Wake County. The Yard Waste Center staff explored pathways to enable viable food waste processing beginning in FY26 by initiating a six-month Food Waste Processing Pilot Program timeline.
On January 5, 2026, SWS launched a soft opening of the Food Waste Processing Pilot Program. A third-party vendor delivered 3 batches of food waste to the Yard Waste Center. The food waste was mixed with organic matter, piled on pad, and capped in mulch with temperature probes to monitor the progress. The pilot tested the addition of post-consumer food waste under North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ) oversight, to evaluate operational integration. Staff has prepared the results of the Organic Food Composting Pilot for presentation to Council.
Kelly Ham, Engineering ServicesDuring the work session staff will provide a status update on the 2022 Parks Bond projects. The presentation is part of the ongoing effort to keep the Council informed of Parks Bond implementation progress, including communications and events such as park dedications and groundbreakings.