04/24/2018

Food waste collection begins at Recycling Center May 1

The town of Cape Elizabeth is excited to announce that you will soon be able to bring your food wastes to the Recycling Center for easy and hassle-free composting.

Composting allows us to reduce our solid waste disposal costs—meaning that every bit of food scrap you put in the compost pile saves taxpayers (that’s also you!) some money. Right now, the town pays $70.50 per ton of waste sent to ecomaine. Food waste composting is $50.00 per ton, and recycling is FREE. That means when you toss a banana peel in the trash can, you’re basically throwing a nickel in there too.

Aside from the monetary benefits to our town, composting diverts landfill ash and produces sustainable biofuel power as well as organic farm fertilizer right here in Maine. It’s a win-win-win, and you can join in by bringing your food scraps to the Recycling Center.

Simply collect your household food waste (see list below) in a lidded container and empty it into the green collection bins with bright orange liners, located just in front of the blue recycling containers.

The program begins on May 1, 2018, so look out for those green bins!

You can compost:

• Fruits & vegetables
• Rinds, peels & cores
• Coffee grounds & filters, tea bags
• Bread & baked goods
• Pasta, rice & grains
• Dairy products
• Eggshells
• Meat & fish scraps and bones
• Paper napkins, cups, and plates
• Cut flowers

Do NOT Compost:

• Plastic
• Metal
• Wax Coated Packaging
• Styrofoam
• Tin Foil
• Condiment Packets
• Bulky Wood
• Leather
• Hygiene Products
• Newspaper, Magazines, Junk Mail

Have a question about composting or what you can put in the bins? Check out the Cape Recycles homepage for more information, including an A-to-Z Recyclopedia!

Cape Elizabeth Recycling Committee