Our community knows a lot about sustainability at this point. Many of us compost, thanks to increasingly convenient composting options. No matter your composting experience, it can always be helpful to get a quick refresher on the rules & importance of composting!

Composting is separating your organic waste (like food scraps, shells, bones, and yard waste) from the rest of your trash and recycling so that it doesn’t end up in the landfill. Composting is important for several reasons. First of all, it repurposes food waste into nutrient-rich soil, which is re-implemented into the earth, creating new life. Additionally, around 50% of the volume of our landfill is food waste, which has long-term impacts on the environment. Food waste in landfills is not able to biodegrade and instead emits methane, a greenhouse gas around 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide, exponentially increasing global warming. 

When composting, there are many things you can do with your organic waste; you can compost it on your own (which entails breaking it down and repurposing it) or you can have a composting company haul it from you. Unfortunately, the state of Utah does not mandate composting, so households have to rely on businesses to take care of composting. Luckily, in Park City we have the Zero Food Waste Initiative. This initiative, run by Park City Community Foundation, is trying to achieve zero food waste in Summit County by 2030 through the use of curbside composting. To participate, you can sign up for you’re own compost bin and weekly pickups from Momentum Recycling on the PCCF website. Let’s keep our land green and clean! 

By Grayson Rae