Top: The grants focus on adding wasted food to existing yard trimmings composting operations. Photo by Doug Pinkerton

U.S. EPA Region 3 announced a grant opportunity on May 30 to fund the upgrade of existing yard trimmings composting facilities in the Region 3 states (Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, and Washington D.C.) to enable them to process food scraps, thereby increasing the region’s capacity for wasted food composting. Eligible applicants include state, local, tribal, and non-profit organizations. Individuals and for-profit entities are not eligible, however public/private partnerships are encouraged. The total estimated funding available for this grant is $150,000, with a minimum individual award of $50,000 and a maximum of $150,000. EPA anticipates making one to three cooperative agreement awards with a project period of one to two years starting January 1, 2025. The application deadline is August 30, 2024. Outcome-based criteria to evaluate applications are improved capacity to compost wasted food; improved ability for individuals, businesses, institutions, municipalities, or other entities to compost wasted food; and improvements to infrastructure resulting in an increased ability to compost wasted food as opposed to landfilling/incinerating such materials.