That moldy cucumber in the back of the crisper drawer is OK. So are bones, houseplants and coffee grounds. But participants in Madison’s pilot program to compost organic waste need to do a better job of separating their trash from their biodegradables, city recycling coordinator Bryan Johnson said Monday.
In an email to residents who volunteered for the program, Johnson clicked off a list of no-nos, including no more waxy paper, potting soil, wine corks or crustacean shells in the organic bin. The biggest offender: plastic bags.
“We still have too many people using plastic bags,” Johnson said. “We need to stop using plastic bags in the organics container.”
Drivers pay attention to bags or other contaminants they see as they dump the black organic waste carts into their trucks, Johnson said. If a cart has banned materials, “I will send a letter instructing the homeowner to change their habits and to ask questions if they need help in figuring out if something is appropriate for organics or not,” Johnson said in his email. “Otherwise, if the contamination continues, we will be forced to remove that home from the program.”
According to Blue Ribbon Organics, the compost company that accepts Madison’s organic waste, capital city composters barely meet the grade. On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being the worst and 10 the best, the city’s last load of food waste was a 6, Johnson said.
“This represents an improvement,” Johnson said. “It was described as ‘by far the cleanest’ we’ve delivered to them, which is fantastic, but a 6 is still a 6. We can do better.”
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