Subsidized Compost Bins

March 1, 4:02 PMBoston Sustainable Food ExaminerLeah Bloom

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Shriveled apples and other food waste make
great compost!

How much of your garbage is made up of food scraps and yard waste?  By some estimates, it could be as much as 35%.  But there is an alternative to throwing all of those organic materials away: composting.

Compost (i.e. decayed plant matter) may sound like something only the crunchiest hippies deal in, but it’s not hard to make or use.  You can compost all kinds of kitchen scraps, from fruit and vegetable scraps to coffee grounds and tea bags.  What’s more, you can easily benefit from composting at home:

• Cut your waste disposal costs
• Make nutrient-rich fertilizer for your garden
• Help your plants resist disease and pests by mulching with compost
• Reduce the amount of energy used to transport waste to landfills
• Reduce the amount of garbage in landfills
• Reduce global warming by cutting methane gas emission.  According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, “Landfills are the largest human-related source of methane in the U.S., accounting for 34% of all methane emissions.”

The MA Department of Environmental Protection offers low-cost compost bins to residents of many cities and towns throughout the state.    Here is a partial list of communities that offer discounted compost bins to residents:

Arlington offers the Bin-24 composter to residents for $40

Boston offers compost bins and kitchen scrap buckets for $50 and $10, respectively.

Burlington offers the Earth Machine to residents for $38.

Cambridge sells the SoilSaver composter for $50.  With each purchase, the city gives a free kitchen scrap bucket and a 3 foot square wire bottom screen to put underneath your bin.

Medford sells two sizes of the Brave New Composter, the 24 cubic foot for $50 and the 12 cubic foot for $40. Call 781-393-2419 for availability and prices or visit www.mass.gov/dep.

Newton sells the Brave New Composter to residents for $35.

The Somerville Environmental Protection Office provides Earth Machine compost bins to
residents at a subsidized price of $25.00.

Waltham offers the Brave New Composter for $30 and the Earth Machine at a discount.

Watertown offers compost bins at the Department of Public Works.  Prior notification is necessary, please call 617-972-6420. A check made out to the Town of Watertown for $25.00 will be needed at time of pickup at 124 Orchard Street.