Abstract
This study measured the total quantity and composition of waste generated in a large, New York City (NYC) hospital kitchen over a one-day period to assess the impact of potential waste diversion strategies in potential weight of waste diverted from landfill and reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. During the one-day audit, the hospital kitchen generated 1515.15 kg (1.7 US tons) of solid waste daily or 0.23 kg of total waste per meal served. Extrapolating to all meals served in 2019, the hospital kitchen generates over 442,067 kg (487 US tons) of waste and emits approximately 294,466 kg of CO2e annually from waste disposal. Most of this waste (85%, 376,247 kg or 415 US tons annually) is currently sent to landfill. With feasible changes, including increased recycling and moderate composting, this hospital could reduce landfilled waste by 205,245 kg (226 US tons, or 55% reduction) and reduce GHG emissions by 189,025 kg CO2e (64% reduction). Given NYC's ambitious waste and GHG emission reduction targets outlined in its OneNYC strategic plan, studies analyzing composition, emissions, and waste diversion potential of large institutions can be valuable in achieving city sustainability goals.
Highlights
In 2017, the United States produced over 41 million US tons of total food waste, of which 75% were landfilled, 19% were combusted, and only 6% were composted [1]
To address the gap in the literature and inform potential institutional and regulatory actions, this study aims to analyze waste generation over one day in the kitchen of an academic medical center, including characterizing the waste for diversion potential and quantifying greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with its disposal
We found that a single hospital in New York City (NYC) annually generates 442,067 kg of waste (487 US tons) and emits approximately 294,466 kg of CO2e from waste disposal
Summary
In 2017, the United States produced over 41 million US tons of total food waste, of which 75% were landfilled, 19% were combusted, and only 6% were composted [1]. This high proportion of landfilled food waste produces negative environmental impacts that fuel climate change. Decomposing food in landfills generates methane, a potent greenhouse gas (GHG) that has a global warming potential (GWP) 104 times greater than that of carbon dioxide [2]. U.S landfills contribute 95.6 billion kg of GHGs annually as of 2014 [3, 4]. Diverting food waste from landfills is a promising strategy to combat climate change.
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