Curbside Composting

Curb your Carbon Footprint! 

The Towns of Ashland and Holliston are partnering with Black Earth Compost to offer subscriptions for household curbside food waste weekly collection services. Composting is a great environmentally friendly way to get rid of your food scraps. Food waste is the largest source of landfill material in Massachusetts and 25% of the trash that municipalities pay for in waste combustion fees is just for food waste. 

This innovative partnership allows residents to receive lower service rates as more households sign up. As of October 2022, the price for 6 months of service dropped from $89.99 to $69.99. 

For more information, contact Black Earth Compost or sriley@ashlandmass.com 

Click here to check out tips, how-to's, and demonstrations on composting from the Mass DEP

What is Compost?

A dark, crumbly, earthy material produced by the natural decomposition of organic materials.¹ Food scraps and other organic materials can be converted to finished compost. This material is an excellent garden and lawn care fertilizer.

Why Compost?

When food waste is sent to landfills, the decomposition of the food generates methane, a greenhouse gas with a strong climate change potential. In addition, waste incinerators create air pollution by-products such as NOx, sulfur dioxide, and CO2.  When food waste is composted, it leaves the conventional waste stream and can help sequester carbon when applied to the soil. ¹ Adding compost back to the soil also adds valuable organic matter back into the ground, making the soil healthier. Composting food scraps also helps you save money by reducing the amount of trash you need to send out every week. 

¹Institute for Local Self Reliance. Home Composting Basics. https://ilsr.org/home-composting-basics/