WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES OCTOBER 21, 2021 3
Curbside composting returns to town
BY JULIA MORO
EDITORIAL@QNS.COM
@QNS
Curbside composting is open for sign-ups in
Glendale, Middle Village, Ridgewood and
Maspeth aft er Mayor Bill de Blasio brought
the program back preceding budgetary shortfalls
due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The New York City Department of Sanitation
(DSNY) will provide brown bins to collect food
scraps, food-soiled paper and yard waste. DSNY
will then process the materials into composts and
renewable energy every week.
During the pandemic, the city devoted resources
primarily to health and safety needs, forcing tough
budget cuts in the spring of 2020 to DSNY. However,
curbside composting and leaf collection is coming
back ahead of schedule.
Compostable waste makes up one-third of all
trash New Yorkers throw away, according to DSNY
Outreach Associate Sid Berraha.
“When these things end up in a landfi ll they release
greenhouse gases, which contributes to rising
sea levels and rising global temperatures,” Berraha
said. “By separating yard waste, food scraps and
food-soiled paper, you’re helping NYC become more
resilient and self-suffi cient.”
The new rollout of the program will be available
to those who sign up to receive free weekly curbside
composting pickup service. The service started this
month in Brooklyn, but will expand as more districts
sign up.
If there are not enough participants in a given
Food scraps, food-soiled paper and yard waste are processed for composting.
Photo courtesy of DSNY
district, residents will be put on a waitlist until
they reach the minimum number. District 5 has
more than 1,000 addresses that have expressed
interest in the program. Until curbside composting
begins in District 5, DSNY encourages residents to
bring food scraps to a drop-off location or compost
at home. There is a site at the Glendale Community
Garden.
DSNY Commissioner Edward Grayson said people
should think of his department as more than trash
cleanup.
“We are a sustainability organization — one of the
largest municipal resource recovery operations in
the world,” Grayson said. “I want to thank de Blasio
for his commitment to this mission, and I’m excited
to see brown bins back on the streets.”
DSNY is looking to add more food scrap drop-off
sites in community districts not yet eligible for
curbside composting. This would allow people to
take their own bins to sites for composting.
Residents can either call 311 or visit nyc.gov/
curbside composting to receive service.
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