The views stated here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the editors of this newspaper. We welcome supporting or opposing views on any published item. Received June 27, 2022.
I’ve always been a kind of backyard composter. I say “kind of” because I don’t do it for the soil. I do it because it’s good for the environment and makes me feel a little less guilty about food waste. The types of foods that go into my composter are pretty limited, though. No meat, fish, bones, etc. But the Transfer Station food scrap waste program has upped my game I am so excited about using it and here’s why:
First, it’s amazing that so much of my household waste can be composted there! Meats and bones, shellfish and fish, egg shells and all kinds of dairy products, fruits and veggies, of course, bread, cereal, tea bags, coffee grounds and filters. But wait, there’s more! Soiled paper food wrappers, uncoated paper plates, fats, even paper towels! I know. Exciting, huh?
But there’s more! The kinds of things that can be composted here take A LOT of stuff out your household trash bag. You use fewer bags, it doesn’t smell up the kitchen and it weighs significantly less. I cleaned asparagus, onions and strawberries for dinner the other night and just those scraps weighed more than a pound. That’s a pound less in the trash at the transfer station. And less weight in those bins means less money we spend in tipping fees when our trash gets to its next destination. Lower fees there will keep our collective costs down. I’m sure you’ve heard that the transfer station pass fee has gone up to $100. We can help deter another rise if we use the composting system.
But you don’t have to buy a $100 pass to access the compost bin! You can, as I did, get a free special pass. It’s easy. You don’t have to get in line and go around. It’s next to the Swap Shack. You can also buy a “starter kit” at the Office Building for $25. Although I have a pretty countertop container, I still bought the kit. Well worth it. It comes with a small (2 gallon), screened basket for the counter, a roll of 25 compostable plastic bags to insert into the basket (they fit my own container perfectly), a 6 gallon bin for outdoors, with a handle that also acts as a lock.
The program is managed by Blue Earth Compost. They’re located in the Hartford area and have been around for years. They have some great info on their website about the advantages of composting. The most important to me is that my waste will get returned to the earth and it will grow more food instead of sitting in a plastic bag for years or being incinerated. I like to take care of my planet. And I bet you do as well. So check out the program at Haddam.org or email HaddamSustainabilityCommittee@gmail.com. Start now! There are going be a lot of very heavy watermelon rinds going into the trash this summer! Don’t let them go to waste.
Dorothy Gillespie, Haddam
Photo, December 2021
