Composting Update! March 26th

Black Earth Compost Bins now located at the Little Compton Town Transfer Station - A SIX (6) MONTH PILOT PROGRAM

We’re excited to announce that starting on March 22nd, the Little Compton Transfer Station will begin offering food scraps drop-off, in partnership with Black Earth Compost. This initiative aims to make composting convenient and accessible to all residents, contributing to our community's sustainability efforts.

Adding your food scraps to the compost bin is easy! Simply visit the designated area near the compactor containers at the Transfer Station and use the green bins to dispose of your food scraps. Black Earth accepts all food scraps, including meat, bones, and dairy, soiled paper products, and certified compostable products. See the full listing here. By participating, you can divert up to half of your waste from the landfill. The material is processed into finished compost in Groton, MA, which is put to use on local farms and backyards gardens to grow more food.

Composting our food waste is critical as the Johnston landfill is set to close in 2040. Organic waste makes up nearly half the municipal solid waste going to incinerators and landfills. In addition to reducing waste, composting addresses several environmental crises we are currently facing. The cost of waste disposal is increasing as we ship our waste on railways as far as Alabama, topsoil continues to be depleted of nutrients and increasing CO2 & methane emissions contribute to climate change. Composting is the easiest way to address these issues by reducing waste, returning nutrients to the soil, reducing our reliance on synthetic fertilizer and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

“Due to rising waste costs, 2023 has been the busiest year we've had in regards to municipalities reaching out to get an organic waste strategy started. The RI landfill is slated to close within 15 years so it will become increasingly important to divert organic waste for composting, which then returns to the community to enrich community gardens, backyard gardens, and farms. This stuff is too good to waste.” - Conor Miller, Founder

Residents interested in curbside compost collection register with Black Earth Compost through their website directly (see below). Participants in curbside compost receive a voucher for a bag of finished compost in the spring, redeemable at participating garden centers. Compost bag purchases support the Black Earth Farm Works program, which offers compost to local farms at a discounted rate. Subscribers can also have their textiles and electronic waste collected with this service.

And now you can even recycle batteries at the

transfer station!!