PRESS RELEASE
City to Host Free Screening of WASTED! on April 13
Film Highlights the Benefits of Diverting Organic Waste from the Landfill
Contacts:
Liz O’Connell Chapman, Senior Waste & Environmental Health Specialist, City of Aspen, 970-319-6890, Liz.Chapman@aspen.gov
Jami McMannes, Communications Manager, City of Aspen, 970-765-4752, Jami.McMannes@aspen.gov
Aspen, Colo. – Tuesday, April 5, 2022 – The City of Aspen is hosting a free screening of the film “WASTED! The Story of Food Waste,” at the Wheeler Opera House (320 E. Hyman, Aspen) on April 13, 2022, at 6 p.m. to share the economic and environmental benefits that organic waste diversion can have on communities. This screening prefaces staff’s intention to go to Aspen City Council in 2022 with a proposed ordinance that would set a phased approach across zones within the city to mandate organic waste diversion practices Tickets to the film are free, although still required.
One-third of the food grown annually for human consumption is never eaten and for one reason or another, it ends up in the garbage. “Reducing and diverting food waste are some of the easiest and cost-effective ways individuals and businesses can do their part to fight climate change,” stated Liz O’Connell Chapman, the Senior Waste and Environmental Health Specialist with the City of Aspen. “An added benefit is saving money while you reduce your impact on the earth’s systems.”
Between 2015 and 2017, 57% of the material from homes and businesses that was put in the Pitkin County Landfill was organic material that could have been diverted to compost.
WASTED! exposes the criminality of food waste and how it’s directly contributing to climate change. Through the eyes of chef-heroes like Bourdain, Dan Barber, Mario Batali, Massimo Bottura, and Danny Bowien, viewers learn how the world’s most influential chefs make the most of every kind of food, transforming what most people consider scraps into incredible dishes that create a more secure food system.
The City of Aspen is working towards conserving the space in the landfill and sustaining Aspen’s natural environment and has set bold and necessary goals to reduce the amount of organic material buried in the landfill by 25% by 2025 and 100% by 2050. Diverting food, yard, and other organic material away from the landfill not only reduce the community’s carbon footprint, but also extends the life of the landfill, conserves resources, reduces pollution, and can be locally composted to add nutrition to our local soils.
For more information and to reserve tickets, visit aspen.gov/scraps.
###