Dear Editor:
The City of Hoboken is continuing to lead the way in New Jersey on environmental solutions, serving as a hub for innovation and creative solutions.
On March 18, the Hoboken City Council authorized the first ever municipal composting program in the State of New Jersey. At this stage, participation in the program is voluntary for residents. Other municipalities across the country, such as Seattle and San Francisco, have passed ordinances integrating composting into their waste disposal programs.
Composting is a process of recycling materials such as food and yard waste into a rich soil known as compost. This soil can be used to more effectively regenerate green gardens and urban parks. Food waste which could be composted takes up substantial space in landfills, and produces methane, which negatively affects climate change. Composting would eliminate these unnecessary hazards to the environment.
By diverting compostable materials from the waste stream, Hoboken will also save costs by reducing tipping fees to garbage haulers. The program aims to result in a modest cost savings to the city of about $15,000 to $20,000 in its first year, with potential for much greater savings through increased participation, while making Hoboken a more environmentally responsible community as well.
The proposal approved by the City Council from Community Compost Company (CCC) for Hoboken includes plans for a residential composting pick-up service, as well as three potential drop spots, which would be set up once a week for residents to bring the compost they’ve collected. An upcoming marketing campaign will educate residents about composting, inform them about available services, and encourage residents to participate.
As of the passage of the resolution, CCC already had 28 customers in Hoboken who use the residential pick-up service and pay between $15 and $27 a month. The compost material collected in Hoboken is taken to Hudson Valley in New York, where CCC manages a composting operation in partnership with local farms. Even on such a small scale, this current program has diverted approximately 1,750 pounds of food scraps from Hoboken’s waste stream, according to CCC. Just think what a positive impact our City could have with even just modestly higher participation rates!
Thank you to Mayor Dawn Zimmer and Environmental Services Director Leo Pellegrini for their hard work in bringing yet another innovative program to Hoboken, as we continue to establish Hoboken as a model for cities everywhere. I hope residents will seriously consider taking part in this composting program.
Sincerely,
Ravinder S. Bhalla
City Council President