Organics / Composting

Home Composting

Home composting is an ideal example of source reduction. Close to 30 per cent of household waste is organic material which can be composted, yet a significant portion of food and yard waste never becomes part of the waste stream.

Grass clippings, vegetable kitchen scraps, leaves and most weeds make excellent compost. Composting on site can reduce the amount of waste in landfills and produces a rich soil enhancer for use on lawns and gardens.

Some municipalities in Alberta are composting on a large scale. In these cases, waste organic material is collected, processed and transformed (much like other recyclable materials) into compost material which is either sold or used elsewhere, such as on municipal lands.