This summer saw Steinbach’s Solid Waste Department try something new in the area of composting – community compost depots. From mid-May to mid-October, two compost depots were available every Saturday at the Steinbach Junior High School and at Woodlawn School.
“Our aim was to collect about 5 tonnes of compostable material every Saturday,” says Eldon Wallman, Solid Waste Department Head. “Unfortunately, the dry summer meant less lawn mowing and therefore much fewer grass clippings for the depots. Material went down to less than one tonne on most Saturdays.”
Although considerably less material was collected than planned (35 tonnes), there were still other positive aspects to the program. Depot workers estimate that at least half the people using the community depots were new to composting and had never brought material to the Landfill’s compost depot. As well, comments from the public were very positive.
“People were very appreciative of the concept and expressed hope that we keep the composting program alive in one form or another,” said Wallman.
As we head into fall, the public is reminded they can still bring their bags of leaves, grass clippings, and garden waste to the Steinbach Landfill to be composted.
