This month, Spectrum News 1 focused on ways to be sustainable without having to completely alter your lifestyle. As we wrap up this series with the help of SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, our final sustainable practice is taking a closer look at compost and how one municipality has added it to their trash pickup.

“If we can reduce our trash stream and get those organics out of there, we’re actually helping the environment so we don’t produce all these greenhouse gases that particularly kitchen waste will produce and also be in the position where we can reduce our tipping fee,” said Mark Matt, the village trustee for the village of Fayetteville.

In February, the village started a vegan compost pickup pilot program with about 100 residents.

“Our whole goal during this pilot year is to actually in order to understand what kind of quirks and different things we have along the way so logistically we can handle what’s going on very well so we can build this program," Matt said. 

The village received funds from the American Rescue Plan to purchase the compost bins and bags for the residents.

“I’ve created an environment with a local company who is actually a quarry and they wanted to compost for remediation of their quarry when they’re doing things along the way," Matt said. "They’re actually doing it for no cost from us. So I actually am literally taking every dollar out that I’m doing now, the reduction of tipping fee and that is actually benefiting my taxpayers.”

“Composting I like to describe it as really just nature’s way of recycling,” said Eden Garden, a student at SUNY ESF, who is working as a research assistant in the Office of Sustainability for the summer.

“Providing access to families who want to be able to send in their compost, maybe you don’t have time or you have financial restrictions that don’t allow you to do it at home, making it as accessible and easy to do as possible for as many people as possible is extremely important,” Gardner said. 

Gardner says whether it's food or grass clippings being composted, it gets broken down into a sediment that can then be reused to grow the next crop.

“Anyone who goes to your local farmers market, if you have a farmer that’s now because of this new program getting their fertilizer from the municipality at a discounted or lowered rate because of household composting, then they’re selling their produce or whatever they’re selling at the farmer’s at a lowered cost which then goes back into your household,” Gardner said.