Longmont is joining other communities across the nation and world to promote “International Compost Awareness Week,” which kicked off Sunday and continues through Saturday.
It comes at a time when Longmont and Boulder County residents are asking for additional local composting options and the ability to compost more items.
The Longmont City Council unanimously approved a motion last month directing city staff to engage in conversations with Boulder County concerning a regional composting facility.
Organic items currently make up “approximately 30% of the material going to landfills,” according to a proclamation signed by Longmont Mayor Joan Peck, recognizing this week as International Compost Awareness Week in Longmont.
“Composting is one of the primary methods communities use to reach waste diversion goals,” the proclamation stated.
For $6.60 a month, Longmont offers a curbside composting collection service to residents that includes either a 96- or 48-gallon cart.
Approximately 7,780 residences are enrolled in the curbside composting service, according to Scott Hansen, Longmont Utilities and Public Works communications and marketing specialist.
The city takes the curbside organics it collects directly to Western Disposal, where they are loaded onto a larger haul truck and delivered to A1 Organics in Keenesburg.
The city is generally invoiced approximately $200,000 per year by A1 Organics for its composting services. The amount is based on a rate of $40 per ton of compostable materials collected.
“The collection rates paid by our customers are intended to cover the cost of service. At this time, the city is looking at performing a rate study in the next year,” Hansen said in an email.
A1 Organics previously announced that beginning April 1, 2023, it would only accept food scraps and yard and plant trimmings in its compost collection. Compostable packaging and other paper materials are now prohibited, largely due to excessive contamination.
Non-compostable look-alike items often found their way into the mix, which took time and labor to remove.
A1 Organics Marketing Manager Clinton Sander said in an email Monday that since implementing the changes, it has seen a big reduction in the levels of contamination in the source separated organics stream.
“Simplifying the acceptable organics to just food and yard organics has brought a lot of awareness to contamination challenges in this recycling stream, creating action,” Sander said. “More and more partners and businesses are creating new strategies and educational opportunities to address this challenge.”
