Haverford Township debuts municipal-wide curbside composting program

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Starting July 13, Haverford Township residents can participate in a new, free curbside service: municipal-wide composting.

Every Monday when the township typically collects yard waste, the Sanitation Division of the Haverford Township Public Works Department will also pick up food waste for composting at Kitchen Harvest in Linvilla Orchards.

All that residents have to do is find a 5-gallon bucket with a tight-fitting lid, line it with a paper bag and fill it with accepted food waste. They can use the same bucket by rinsing and repeating the steps the following week.

Township Manager David Burman estimates the voluntary program could slash household refuse from the typical waste stream by about 30%.

“It’s not every day you get to offer a new service to your township residents, do something positive for the environment and also potentially reduce costs — because we’re seeing that actually it costs less to divert the food waste and organic waste out of our regular trash collection,” said Judy Trombetta, president of Haverford Township Board of Commissioners.

Haverford held a yellow bucket and composting kit giveaway event June 14. Since then, the township has been disseminating the leftover buckets on a first-come, first-served basis. Residents can pick one up at the township building.

“We have about 500 left,” Burman said Tuesday. “They’re going fast.”

What can — and cannot be composted?

From fruits and vegetables to grains and baked goods, the list of food waste that can be composted is extensive.

“We could take dairy, nuts, eggshells, cooked or processed foods, fried foods, and table scraps, flour and house plant trimmings, hair and fur, cold fireplace ash, and sawdust — not charcoal, not treated wood — and we could take empty pizza boxes without the wax paper,” Burman said.

However, there are strict guidelines regarding what will not be accepted. This includes plastic, meat, bones, pet waste and produce stickers.

“A lot of folks are very concerned about the odors and the fact that sometimes food waste will attract vermin and other potential bugs and all that,” Burman said. “So it’s very important that folks put a lid on their bucket.”

A comprehensive list of do’s and don’ts can be found on the township’s website.

“We think that if people participate on a voluntary basis, they’re going to get it right,” Burman said.

Burman and Trombetta credited Haverford’s Environmental Advisory Committee, volunteer Joy Baxter and the township’s staff for turning an aspect of Haverford’s climate action plan into something actionable for residents.

“This is a win-win-win from the township’s perspective,” Trombetta said.