What you will find on this page
- Why composting matters
- Composting options in Lake Hogan Farms
- Cool videos
- Comment or suggestion?
- Topic contributors
Why composting matters
Composting — when you divert food scraps, leaves, grass and other biodegradable material away from landfills and incinerators — is an easy and powerful way to help address climate change.
Back in 2017, 75 million tons of food waste and yard trimmings, the equivalent of over one quarter of all trash collected in U.S. towns and cities, could have been composted.
When you compost, you prevent the emission of methane gases from landfills. Methane is a greenhouse gas that is about 28 times more harmful than carbon dioxide. In Lake Hogan Farms, it also means that you would be helping our town reach its Climate Action Plan goals.
Sources:
- Environment America / Composting
- EPA / Waste Materials
- EPA / Greenhouse Gas Emissions
- Washington Post / Food Waste (2018)
Composting options in Lake Hogan Farms
You can choose from a few options based on skill, time you can put in, patience, money you are willing to spend, and what you want to get out of it.
Backyard composting at home
If you have the time, interest, skill, space, and patience for composting organic waste in your own backyard, the Town of Carrboro offers helpful backyard composting tips. Orange County’s Waste Management department also provides compost-at-home resources and sells countertop ($5) and backyard compost bins ($50) at its Eubanks office, 1207 Eubanks Road, Chapel Hill.
Vermicomposting at home
Vermiculture Composting, or Vermicomposting, is a particular type of composting using earthworms or Black Soldier Fly grubs, along with microorganisms, and other decomposers to convert organic materials to a soil conditioner called vermicompost. Vermicomposting has more nutrients than traditional composting and can be done outside or indoors.
Here are some regional resources to research and learn about Vermicomposting:
NC State / Vermicomposting
NC State / Curriculum
Carolinacompost.com
Carolinafarmstewards.org
Food waste curbside pick-up
CompostNow is currently the only provider we are aware of that offers curbside pick-up of organic, biodegradable food waste at homes in Lake Hogan Farms. They offer a few service and pricing options depending on how much you will be composting. They will return composted materials back to you upon request. You can compost everything on this list. If you want to hear from someone that has used CompostNow, here is a great blog post about their service.
- Sign up online — you can try it for free!
- Get a countertop container for collecting food scraps in your kitchen in an organized way. There are lots of options out there. You can get a simple one from Orange County’s office on Eubanks for $5, or just Google “countertop compost container”. And, make sure you get a compostable liner for the countertop container. It makes it easier and cleaner. Here are some examples.
- CompostNow will contact you to find the best pick-up date on their route.
- They will drop off your 4-gallon compost bin(s).
- Put your full compost bin out by 7am on your weekly pick-up day.
- Request free compost from the material you’ve composted.
And, you can track your composting impact on your account.
Yard waste curbside pick-up
The Town of Carrboro picks up yard waste (branches, grass, leaves, shrubbery, trimmings, and weeds) using 95-gallon, water-tight, brown roll-out containers (which you can purchase from the Town for $48.25 per container) or raked in a pile curbside for regularly scheduled collection.
Food waste drop off
Neither the Town of Carrboro nor Lake Hogan Farms currently offer drop off locations for food waste. Orange County’s locations nearest to Lake Hogan Farms include the Eubanks Road Waste and Recycling Center and the Carrboro Farmers Market near town hall. You can drop off your food waste for free.
Yard waste drop off
Orange County’s Eubanks Road Waste and Recycling Center takes all yard waste.
Cool videos
Comment or suggestion?
We hope this is helpful and welcome information. If you have a comment or suggestion, just drop us a note using our contact form. Make sure you include your contact information. We will get back to you as quickly as we can. Keep in mind that we are a small group of volunteers supporting this resource.
Topic contributors
Tilly Pick