Matt Cotton has over 30 years of experience in the organics recycling industry, including decades of shaping statewide composting policy, legislation, and regulation. He currently works with public and private composters to meet the challenges of SB 1383. Matt has helped permit and develop some of the major composting facilities in California, and has published research on compost odors, compost use, climate impacts, compostable plastics, and compost infrastructure. Furthermore, Matt served almost two decades on the Board of Directors of the US Composting Council.

Recent accomplishments include completing four statewide studies of organics processing infrastructure for CalRecycle, including the SB 1383 Infrastructure and Marketing Analysis Report (2019), and co-authoring a chapter in the Composting Handbook (2022).