Vail launches curbside compost pilot program
Initiative, which will start in select West Vail neighborhoods, aims to divert organic waste from landfill
The town of Vail is partnering with Vail Honeywagon to implement a curbside compost pilot program in select West Vail neighborhoods to collect and haul residential organic waste including food and yard waste.
Through the pilot program, the town seeks to gather data and information on the viability of a town-wide curbside composting program and to evaluate the effect of such a program on the countywide Climate Action Plan goal of diverting 80% of all organic waste from the landfill by 2030.
The pilot program will include up to 100 households within designated West Vail neighborhoods. The program will be open to West Vail residents who live along the valley floor throughout West Vail from Sandstone to Arosa Drive on the north side of town and the Intermountain to Matterhorn neighborhood on the south side.
West Vail neighborhoods above the valley floor will be considered on a case-by-case basis. Applicants must live in participating neighborhoods full-time with their Vail address as their primary residence. Year-round residents will be prioritized for participation.
Participants will receive a 5-gallon locking bucket to place compostable materials in and two large yard waste bags. Compost will be collected weekly by Vail Honeywagon. Items accepted include all food waste, including meat and dairy products, yard waste, BPI certified compostable service ware, cups, and bags, and most natural fibers (paper towels, coffee filters, shredded paper, pizza boxes, etc.).
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The 5-gallon locking bucket for all food waste must be stored indoors or in a wildlife resistant enclosure and placed out on the curbside only on the morning of service.
In accordance with town wildlife regulations, all compost must be placed on the curbside or identified pick-up location only on the morning of collection no later than 8 a.m. and brought back indoors by 7 p.m. All food waste must be in the locking bucket when placed on the curbside. If it is completely free of any food waste or food residue, yard waste can be placed at the curbside on collection day in paper yard waste bags or in a container no larger than 20 gallons in size.
Vail is subsidizing the program by 50% for the duration of the pilot program, which will run through April 2022. The subsidized cost to residents is $8/month, billed quarterly. A limited number of HOAs and multi-family residences are also eligible. Pricing varies based on size of the complex. The town will subsidize 50% of the monthly fee to the HOA or multi-family unit up to $50/month.
Vail recently adopted the Climate Action Plan 2020 Update for the Eagle County Community, which establishes a goal of a 25% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2025, 50% by 2030 and 80% by 2050. As part of that goal, the plan establishes a 30% diversion rate of all waste going to the landfill by 2030 with at least 80% of organic waste, including food waste, yard waste and paper and cardboard materials, being diverted by 2030.
The 2018 Northwest Colorado Waste Diversion Study indicated that organic waste, including food and yard waste, comprises about 37.4% of all waste in the landfill. When organics break down in the anaerobic environment created in a landfill, they release methane gas, which is a greenhouse gas with an impact 25 times greater than carbon dioxide over a 100-year period. In 2020, Town of Vail achieved a 29% recycling rate with 3.7% of compostable materials being diverted.
Composting is one of many solutions that can help reduce impacts of climate change. The compost created also returns nutrients to the soil that will grow healthy, strong, and nutrient rich vegetables, fruits and other plants.
Residents outside of the West Vail pilot program boundary interested in composting can enroll in a subscription compost service through Vail Honeywagon that provides access to a compost dumpster at the Vail recycling center. The goals of this pilot program are to increase participation in residential composting, increase diversion of organics to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and determine if it is a feasible program to implement fully throughout Vail.
More information about the curbside compost pilot program can be found at lovevail.org/compost or call 970-476-3511 to enroll. For questions about the West Vail Curbside Compost Pilot program or other town of Vail sustainability initiatives, call Beth Markham, environmental sustainability coordinator at 970-479-2333 or bmarkham@vailgov.com.
