Westmont, Illinois -- Date Issued: January 14, 2021
Beginning this Spring, Waste Management (WM) will offer a new compost/yard waste pick-up program to Westmont residents. This new opportunity is optional for residents who wish to participate. The program will begin the first full week of April and continue through mid-December.
“About 30% of household waste is made up of food scraps and lawn waste,” said Environmental Improvement Committee (EIC) member Christa Stanulis. “Composting food scraps extends the lifespan of our landfills, reduces greenhouse gas emissions, and creates a nutrient rich soil amendment.”
COMPOST/YARD WASTE PROGRAM OPTIONS
- Residents can purchase and utilize their own 32-gallon container with a lid to serve as the receptacle for their lawn waste and/or accepted composting materials. Each resident-provided compost/yard waste container requires (1) yard waste sticker for each pick-up and must not weigh more than 45 lbs. Yard waste stickers cost $3.37 each.
- Residents may rent a 64-gallon or 96-gallon wheeled organics toter from WM. Rented toters do not require a sticker and can be used for yard waste and accepted composting materials. The cost to rent the WM organics toter is $142.80 per year.
The EIC researched composting options and surveyed resident interest, which resulted in the creation of this program. It is expected that this new composting opportunity will benefit Westmont residents as well as reduce items that currently are placed in the waste stream and are deposited in landfills.
ACCEPTED COMPOST MATERIALS
Following is a list of compostable items that are accepted in this program:
- Lawn waste
- Fruits & vegetables - includes unpainted holiday pumpkins
- Leftovers/kitchen scraps - includes coffee grounds, tea bags and filters
- Breads, grains, pasta & cereal
- Meat, poultry, seafood - includes shells & bones
- Dairy solids & eggs - includes egg shells; liquids are NOT accepted
- Food-soiled paper products - includes paper towels, plates, napkins, egg cartons, pizza boxes
- Newspaper can be used to wrap compostables - compostable & biodegradable plastic bags are NOT accepted
For more information and to sign up for this program, contact Waste Management at wm.com or call 1-800-964-8988.
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