County seeks public input on commercial composting

The County shares news about a survey running through the end of the month related to commercial composting in the islands.

San Juan County is exploring how to best implement commercial composting for residents and businesses in the Islands, and we need your help. The County’s Solid Waste Program has created a survey to gauge community interest in such a program. The survey is available online now through Tuesday, Aug. 30.

Commercial composting is the large-scale decomposition of organic waste such as food and yard waste. A commercial composting facility in San Juan County will collect organic waste from restaurants, grocery stores, other businesses, and individual residents. It is designed to handle large amounts of waste and creates compost that can be used at farms, nurseries, local municipalities, or at individual residences.

Commercial composting improves soil quality, reduces waste, and saves money. According to the EPA approximately 30 percent of landfill waste could be composted and turned into fertilizer that could be used to benefit the local community.

“We want to hear from all residents on San Juan, Orcas, Lopez, Shaw, and the outer islands to get input on their interest in participating in commercial composting and to help us ensure that an organics recycling program can be successful,” said Katie Fleming, Solid Waste Coordinator in San Juan County’s Department of Environmental Stewardship.

Representatives from the solid waste programs on Orcas, Lopez, and San Juan islands will be speaking about composting, waste disposal, recycling, and other reduction initiatives at a Talking Trash panel discussion at the San Juan County fair on Thursday, Aug. 18 at 3 p.m. in the Green Village. For more information, contact Katie Fleming at [email protected] or 360-762-5821.

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