Most people don’t realize that roughly 20 to 30 percent of what they throw away at home is food waste that ends up in landfills. To help solve that problem the City of Culver City recently began an Organics Composting Program. Martin Feinberg, Culver City Realtor, was interested to learn that the new program will allow Culver City residents to dispose of their food waste in “organics” containers. The waste in the containers will be converted into compost and then offered to the public at compost giveaways and other events throughout the year.
As part of the Organics Composting Program, Culver City’s green containers, formerly known as Yard Waste containers, can now accept food waste materials such as meats, dairy, vegetable peels, coffee grounds, napkins, moldy bread, wax boxes, used pizza boxes, egg shells, as well as compostable take out containers and utensils. Residents can still dispose of yard waste in their organics containers for industrial composting but bio-compostable products are not accepted.
Normally, when food and other compostables are taken to landfills, they are encased in plastic liners. These liners are meant to keep the groundwater safe from toxic liquids that form from a mixture of decomposing organic material and trash. This means that the food’s nutrients never return to the soil but rot and produce greenhouse gases such as methane instead.
By taking part in the new Organic Composting Program, the Culver City Real Estate area community can reduce its carbon footprint and help to create a healthier environment.
This program will be especially helpful now, since Culver City’s polystyrene ban in 2017 caused many local food establishments to offer fiber take out containers and compostable utensils. The new Organics Composting Program will allow these materials to become compost as well.
Martin Feinberg, Realtor, also notes that while most typical backyard compost bins are vegetarian only and accept no meat or dairy, Culver City’s Organics Composting Program processing facility accepts meats, bones, and dairy. This means less leftovers going to the landfill overall.
