Residents Scoop Up Steaming Dirt on Compost Give Back Day

(Submitted by Michelle Sterling of the Conservation Advisory Council)

Compost Give Back Day is one of the happiest and most rewarding days of the year in Scarsdale! This past Saturday, despite the rainy weather, hundreds of enthusiastic residents came to the Scarsdale Recycling Center with buckets, pails, and containers of all kinds to collect rich, high-quality compost made from their very own food scraps. We were thrilled to welcome the delivery of 50 cubic yards of compost, a tangible result of the over 3.5 million pounds of food scraps that have been recycled through the Scarsdale Food Scrap Recycling Program since it began in January 2017.

Many residents noticed the compost pile was steaming—a great sign that the composting process is thriving! That steam is created by the heat generated from tiny microorganisms breaking down the organic material. Our soil is alive, and these hardworking microbes play a vital role in turning food waste into nutrient-rich compost. It’s an incredible full-circle moment for the community to see their food scraps transformed into something so beneficial for their gardens and our environment. We want everyone in Scarsdale to join the program—email composting@scarsdale.gov to become a food scrapper and help the environment every day by reducing waste and creating valuable compost that we proudly return to the earth.

Heather Kolb, Matthew Goldstein and Julia Schonfeld

Michelle and Frank Lichtenberg