There are more ways than ever to reduce, reuse and recycle in Chapel Hill, with the most recent opportunity to keep waste out of the landfills coming in the form of a new composting location.
The Chapel Hill Farmers’ Market has begun accepting residential food waste at its University Place location. This new drop-off program will divert organic waste from the landfill to create compost and reduce potent greenhouse gas emissions like methane.
Compostable materials can be dropped off during Saturday market hours from 8 a.m. until noon.
Chapel Hill Mayor Pam Hemminger said giving residents a viable way to go green is important to the town’s mission.
“It’s part of our Climate Action Plan – reducing the waste,” Hemminger said. “It’s waste that doesn’t have to take up room in a landfill, that can go back into the earth to create that compost to help grow more gardens and to help that cycle of life.”
Waste reduction, composting, and building healthy food systems are all important parts of Chapel Hill’s recently adopted Climate Action and Response Plan, and a goal of producing zero waste by 2045.
The compost site is made possible by the collaborative efforts of the Chapel Hill Farmer’s Market, Orange County Solid Waste Management, University Place, and the Town of Chapel Hill.
“We work with these different groups – with some restaurants and grocery stores – and now we’re making it more available to individuals through having it at public places,” Hemminger said.
Food scraps collected at the farmers market will be processed by Brooks Contractor in Goldston, North Carolina. This large commercial composting facility manages more than 50,000 tons of scraps annually and can accept a very wide array of organic materials – including raw or cooked kitchen scraps, paper products such as napkins or paper towels, and certified compostable serving-ware.
Hemminger said users should make sure they remove all stickers, labels, plastic, rubber bands, twist-ties, and other “contaminants” from their food before tossing it in the bin.
“We do have to staff these events to make sure people understand what you can compost and what doesn’t really work in composting,” Hemminger said. “So, the more we educate people, our hope is that more people will want to compost and realize the great benefits in doing so.”
The Chapel Hill Farmers’ Market joins more than 50 other commercial sites served under the Orange County program – and three other residential food waste drop off sites located at Carrboro Farmer’s Market and the County’s Waste and Recycling Centers at Eubanks Road and Walnut Grove Church Road.
“It’s just a really good way to not have to throw things into a plastic bag that then goes into a landfill to sit for hundreds of years,” Hemminger said.
For more information about the newest composting location at the Chapel Hill Farmer’s Market, click here.
Lead photo via the DTH.
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