After six years of dormancy, the Ojai Valley Organics (OVO) recycling facility has reopened, offering a powerful example of community-driven environmental stewardship and innovation in organics recycling.
Operated by Progressive Environmental Industries (PEI), the facility on Old Baldwin Road is now once again processing yard clippings and clean lumber. With help from $1.2 million in state funding, PEI’s Arturo Gonzalez outfitted the site with a state-of-the-art grinder and infrastructure designed to divert green waste from landfills, reducing methane emissions and replenishing Ojai Valley soils.
Once a former burn dump, the site now hosts mulch and wood chipping operations and is poised to expand into composting food waste and manure. Plans include future water-capture systems to reduce environmental runoff.
Local support was critical to OVO’s revival. A grassroots “Save OVO Coalition” rallied residents, streamlining a once-stalled permitting process. County Supervisor Matt LaVere and environmental advocates like David Goldstein praised the reopening as both a sustainability milestone and an economic win for contractors, landscapers, and residents.
Across the country, similar programs are taking root. Starting this spring, residents of Brooklyn Center, Brooklyn Park, Crystal, and New Hope in Minnesota will enjoy curbside organics collection through the Hennepin Recycling Group. The movement reflects growing awareness that 20–40% of landfill waste is compostable material. Many see this as a challenge and an opportunity for innovative waste management.
At Diamond Scientific, we applaud these developments. Whether it's optimizing gas analyzers to monitor compost emissions or advancing methane capture from green waste, we’re proud to support sustainable waste solutions that protect air, water, and soil.
Reducing landfill waste starts with local action—and Ojai’s success is a blueprint for communities everywhere.
Interested in learning more about how Diamond Scientific supports sustainable innovation? Contact us at info@diamondsci.com
