By Linda Talbott
(July 3, 2022) — Haddam Seniors were treated to a summer picnic at the Haddam Neck Fairgrounds on June 20, 2022. Haddam Sustainability Committee member Linda Talbott (photo above) explained to them how easy it is to participate in the town’s Food Scrap Compost Program at the Transfer Station located at 750 Saybrook Road. Here are the highlights:
- The trash to energy plant Haddam uses, MIRA, located in Hartford, is due to close in August 2022 and become a transfer station.
- This will impact our hauling fees which, right now, are at $105/Ton.
- However, for the next two years or so, our trash will go to the plant in Preston, causing a slight hauling fee increase, but that plant is aging out also.
- If you compost in your yard, keep it up! Meat, bones, fish, shellfish, dairy should not be put into backyard composts, but can be composted in this program with Blue Earth Compost.
- Backyard composters just need a compostable bag to put those items into. A roll of 25 BioBags is available at the Town Office Building for $5 a roll: Higganum Village Market also has them. Two-gallon Biobags are also on Amazon
- Meat, bones, fish, shellfish/shells, dairy, pasta, bread, grains, eggs and shells, fruits, vegetables, coffee grounds, paper filters, tea bags (no staples), nuts, cut flowers, herbs, pet food (no pet waste), food soiled plain white paper plates, napkins, pits and peels can be composted in this program. So far 8.93 Tons of food scraps have been removed from the town’s Municipal Solid Waste (MSW).
- Starter kits for those who don’t compost also are available at the Tax Collector’s, First Selectman’s and Assessor’s offices.
- For $25 you get a two-gallon countertop bin, a six-gallon transport bin and a roll of 25 compostable bags. There are about 39 starter kits left.
- You can use any bin you like to participate, but ONLY COMPOSTABLE BAGS, or no bag at all.
- When the countertop bin is full, tie a knot in the compostable bag and drop it into the green transport bin. You can keep that in your shed or garage or outside, if you bungee cord it closed.
- Put the green bin in your car and dump the food scraps into the Blue Earth Compost bins located right next to the Swap Shack at the Transfer Station
- Program is free to anyone who has a Transfer Station pass. If you or a neighbor has a private trash hauler, there are free green food-scrap-only passes located also in the Town Office Building. They do not expire at the present time.
- Blue Earth takes our food scraps to anaerobic digester Quantum Biopower in Southington, where they convert it into compost in 21 days. Quantum contains the methane byproduct inside the building and helps to create electricity for the Town of Southington during the process.
Food scraps and leftover food from the Senior Picnic were collected and Linda Talbott and Bob Waller brought them to the Transfer Station to put into the Blue Earth Compost bins. Sustainability Committee members are also collecting food scraps from the Senior Center lunches when members are available.
Contact HaddamSustainabilityCommittee@gmail.com with any questions.
