Archive: Around Town

The Tompkins County Solid Waste Division is pleased to announce the opening of the County's newest food scraps recycling drop spot, in conjunction with the Brooktondale Farmers Market.

Located at the Brooktondale Community Center at 522 Valley Road, this pilot drop spot will be open every Tuesday beginning June 28th from 4-6pm. This free service offers residents the opportunity to expand their waste diversion options while reducing trash disposal costs.

Residents can visit the drop spot beginning June 28th to receive their free food scraps recycling toolkit, complete with a kitchen caddy, compostable liners, and a transport container. The program accepts all food scraps, including meat, bones, and dairy products, as well as paper towels and napkins. The material collected is taken to Cayuga Compost in Trumansburg, where it's processed into compost and sold to homeowners, landscapers and farmers as a soil amendment.

This is the County's eighth food scraps recycling drop spot. Last year, the drop spots saw over 20,000 drops and collected over 400,000 pounds of material.

Solid Waste Manager Barbara Eckstrom noted the public-private partnership between the County and Cayuga Compost is playing a significant role toward meeting the County's goal of 75% waste diversion.

"We plan to open additional drop spots around the County before the end of 2016 to help make food scraps recycling accessible to more residents, while offering a service that is clean, comfortable and convenient," Eckstrom said.

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