The Waste Prevention Program is jointly held by the WSU Clallam Extension office and the Clallam County Department of Solid Waste and has been educating citizens about waste prevention for the better part of a decade. This program has been through different iterations as staff members and funding changes shaped it over the years. The core goals and activities consistently focus on increased awareness and education around waste prevention in Clallam County through a combination of community education, workshops, initiatives, policy changes and advocacy across local government. Now Clallam County is taking a fresh new approach by combining waste prevention and food recovery.
The Roots of the Clallam County Waste Prevention Program (WPP)
In the past, the WPP focused heavily on recycling and solid waste management, in an effort to decrease public confusion around recyclables and contamination. Staff members were often seen in the community at local events and fairs, engaging with the public directly on these issues, or hosting workshops aimed at different population segments such as students or young families with interactive ‘reuse, reduce, recycle’ games and activities. Behind the scenes, the WPP has been a key part of Clallam County’s Solid Waste Advisory Committee that shapes the County’s management plan around all aspects of solid waste. WPP staff made important contributions to the final plan around recycling programs, community education, and advocacy for more sustainable future visioning in Clallam County.
The Waste Prevention Program has also historically played a critical role in public schools in various meaningful programs, most notably in the areas of composting and food waste prevention. WSU staff have worked directly with many students over the years in the school gardens and in classrooms delivering curriculum about composting, food production, food waste, climate change impacts, and the role of all eaters in the effort to shift our local food systems towards a sustainable future.
Students always enjoy the hands-on education that has included building and maintaining composting systems, using compost in the garden, learning about soil science, and waste-sorting activities to understand different types of solid waste in addition to basic recycling and composting. WPP staff have also been instrumental in bringing together the school districts and the food service programs to discuss ways to prevent food waste during lunches. These discussions look to decrease plastic waste associated with meal service, create donation systems and food recovery systems that get uneaten food to community members in need through the food banks or other emergency food resources.
The WPP Today
It is on these food waste prevention and donation/recovery topics that the current WPP staff member Benji Astrachan has been predominantly focused over the last several years. As a Food Waste Prevention Specialist and a member of the WSU Clallam Extension SNAP-Ed team working on food security, Benji has been able to combine and connect several projects across the different county departments that share common goals around waste reduction and resource reallocation to address issues of food insecurity and barriers to healthy food.
Since the beginning of 2023, Benji has been working diligently through the WPP in combatting food waste. In April, this county was a proud member of the national Food Waste Prevention Campaign, and worked with partners across the state, nation and continent to offer a series of events, educational opportunities and policy change recommendations all aimed at reducing food waste and diverting edible food to those in need. The week was a wonderful success and included many garden and classroom lessons for elementary students, a recipe demonstration at the Port Angeles Food Bank, a student field trip to a local farm’s composting operation, and tabling events at the Port Angeles Farmers Market. Furthermore, both the City of Port Angeles and Clallam Board of County Commissioners issued proclamations to officially recognize and promote these food waste prevention efforts.
Another significant focus of the Waste Prevention Program under Benji’s tenure has been the expansion of local farm gleaning efforts. Benji keeps creating opportunities for volunteers to be able to harvest crops from local farms that would otherwise go unpicked and then ensuring these crops are delivered to food banks and community meals.
Benji has expanded the extant Farm Gleaning Program at the WSU Extension office to also begin gleaning excess organic plant starts that would be composted on the farm but are now recovered and redistributed to those interested in growing their own food. This has led to many thousands of plant starts being donated to local schools and community gardens, and directly to citizens through First Step, the Senior Center, the food bank and other organizations. This expansion of the concept of gleaning is critical in creating a broader understanding of the value of our natural resources, and the motivation to see them used positively, rather than wasted. The ties between Benji’s work for the WPP and for the WSU Clallam Extension have been perfect in connecting these wonderfully suited partners and they have expanded the reach of these programs to impact and benefit a broader segment of our community.
What’s next for the WPP?
- At the Port Angeles Food Bank, the new processing kitchen will be an excellent host site for workshops and volunteer efforts towards turning otherwise-wasted food into delicious and nutritious meals for food bank clients.
- Across school districts, the school gardens are also set to continue and expand composting and food waste prevention education, as the WSU Clallam Extension’s school garden programming becomes more fully staffed and better connected to meet the needs of students and teachers across the County.
- Benji is planning on offering food waste prevention courses that will help participants understand their unique role in combatting food waste in the home and supply them with an arsenal of knowledge and kitchen skills to make the best use of food through budget-friendly healthy cooking with no waste.
The Waste Prevention Program stands on the shoulders of many former staff and community members who have long sought to educate and activate local citizens on the issues of solid waste prevention and reduction. Now, with state and federal legislation aimed at increasing sustainability and efficiency in regional food systems and solid waste management, it is an exciting time to be working in this field, and we hope you’ll join us!
Join in the farm gleaning fun by contacting Farm Glean coordinator Benji Astrachan at benji.astrachan@wsu.edu