Cambridge committee unanimously forwards Zero Waste ordinance package to full council

CAMBRIDGE -- May 26, 2026, Cambridge's Health and Environment Committee voted 4-0 to send a Zero Waste ordinance package to the full City Council with a favorable recommendation, aiming for a June 1 vote. Committee Chair Patty Nolan convened the meeting to review the first round of regulatory changes called for by the Zero Waste Master Plan 2.0, adopted by the council in June 2025. Department of Public Works Commissioner Owen Nardone and Recycling Director Mike Lohr reported that Cambridge has cut residential trash generation 37 percent since 2008, to 14.7 pounds per household per week, and that diverted waste exceeded trash tonnage for the third consecutive year in 2025. Key proposals include mandatory food waste diversion citywide, zero-waste plans required from owners of buildings with 13 or more residential units or 25,000 or more square feet of commercial space, an updated plastic bag ordinance eliminating heavy-duty plastic bags from checkout counters, and a new Skip the Stuff ordinance. Disposal costs currently stand at $145 per ton for trash versus $85 per ton for food waste. Enforcement of the main refuse ordinance would begin 12 months after council enactment; the bag and Skip the Stuff ordinances would be enforced at the six-month mark. Vice Mayor Sumbul Siddiqui Azeem was the lone absent member.