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Monday, August 16, 2010

City City Considers Apartment and Condo Composting

Posted by Riya Bhattacharjee on Mon, Aug 16, 2010 at 2:22 PM

R.B.
Trash talk

Last week we gave you the rundown on the city weighing a proposal to reduce trash pick-ups to every other week. A few people from Renton and Olympia responded that they already have that system and it works just fine. While you wrap your heads around that, there's more. The city is also thinking of requiring landlords and condo associations to sign up for a weekly food and yard-waste collection service for their tenants. Seattle's Solid Waste Director Tim Croll presented the proposal right before the bi-weekly trash talk at the City Council's Public Utilities and Neighborhoods Committee meeting Tuesday.

Most single-family homes in Seattle already subscribed to the service last year, but about half of Seattle's residents live in apartments and condos, Croll said, which resulted in 19,000 tons of food waste and compostable paper being dumped into the garbage cans. The expansion would extend this compost program into a mandatory program for apartments and condos.

The changes would entail rate hikes for garbage (the legislation would not require residents to separate food from garbage). Cost would be determined by a few factors: size of the dumpster, whether residents would choose to wheel the cart out to the curb or order curbside service, and the number of units per buildings. If the full council votes on the proposal by November, the city may begin the program by next September. Cost to the city? $250,000.

The city has already been doing a pilot program on about 40 different properties throughout the city, which has received positive feedback, said city council Member Mike O'Brien, who supports the idea. However, the Seattle Rental Housing Association objected to any requirements to participate in the program at the meeting, arguing that it would create problems for properties without on-site management.

Small apartments that have no room for an organics pick-up wouldn't be required to do anything.

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Comments (18) RSS

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Is this saying mandatory for apartments and condos but NOT for single family homes? Is that legal?

Posted by Joe Szilagyi

on August 16, 2010 at 2:35 PM

I'm totally down for this, as a feeble apartment-dweller.

Although it's annoying enough to fit two garbage bins in my small apartment.

Posted by supergp on August 16, 2010 at 2:38 PM

I wonder how many people will dump plastic-wrapped dog/cat poo in the compost bins?

Posted by Will in Seattle

on August 16, 2010 at 2:43 PM

@3: Almost all of them. Everytime I walk by a bus stop, I see the trash cans with the obvious signs saying they're not for pet poop. And every one has pet poop in it.

Posted by supergp on August 16, 2010 at 2:51 PM

and just who is this mysterious council member "tim o'brien" ?

Posted by ap on August 16, 2010 at 2:59 PM

They made it mandatory here, giving us these doll-sized green bins for composting, in your apartment, but probably on your back deck or outdoor hallway since it's gonna stink. They're just small enough for a rat to get into.

Like our recycling program, it's well intentioned, but badly executed—and counterproductive—to a city like San Francisco. If we had a large bin like Seattle's yard waste ones, that'd work better.

Posted by Dougsf on August 16, 2010 at 3:06 PM

Let's all just toss our compostables in the Chihulhy exhibit, since it will be mostly empty and we have to do something with those empty glass vases.

Posted by Will in Seattle

on August 16, 2010 at 3:21 PM

@4 How can you tell it's pet poop? I assume it's bagged bum dung.

Posted by tiktok on August 16, 2010 at 3:34 PM

We live in a small building of 10 units. We have a yard waste/food waste bin and it seems to work out pretty well.

Posted by tabletop_joe on August 16, 2010 at 3:37 PM

@4: Dog poop doesn't smell the same as bum poop. And since I used to work basically underneath the Viaduct, sadly, I can tell the difference.

Posted by supergp on August 16, 2010 at 3:54 PM

Basically, diet. Cats and dogs eat way more meat.

Posted by Will in Seattle

on August 16, 2010 at 4:21 PM

I do not want fewer pick ups, I want more of them! If we have trash pick up every other week, then the dustbin will overflow and trash will be in the carport (no the manager won't pick it up).

In fact, that's what happens w/recycling now; that's every other week, and the bin is stuffed w/i a day or two. So people put recyclables into the garbage. We need recycling pickup at least once a week.

We have a compost pick up, but nobody uses it much. People passing by dump their trash in that one too.

Posted by MungoJerry on August 16, 2010 at 4:26 PM

Vexatious taxation is sinking the Rotton Urbs.

The Countryside rises!

Posted by Supreme Ruler Of The Universe

on August 16, 2010 at 4:41 PM

@13 i think you mean the suburbs. The cities would be doing fine if we didn't have to pay for the inefficient other parts of the state.

Posted by Will in Seattle

on August 16, 2010 at 4:42 PM

@1- yard waste collection is currently required for seattle single-family homes. This would make that rule more fair. I just conracted the food/yard for a pike st. Building. The tenants kept asking, so we ordered a bin. It's only like 7 bucks a month.

Posted by razorclammer on August 16, 2010 at 5:55 PM

My apartment in Fremont has a big compost/yard waste container. It doesn't seem to get that much use, but it's there...

Posted by Amnt on August 16, 2010 at 6:10 PM

My building doesn't even have a recycle bin.

Posted by T on August 17, 2010 at 3:07 PM

I've been asking my landlord for a food/yard waste bin since I moved in. I'd love it if he was a little more motivated. Right now I just find the nearest building with a bin to deposit my compost :P

Posted by seattleshane on August 31, 2010 at 9:28 AM