See that rich black soil? You made that!
Finished compost from Waste Free West End has been added to the Circle Garden in Rose Circle Park.
Come join tomorrow morning May 6th at 10 am to add the finishing touches by planting lots of plants.
Waste Free West End has joined a worldwide network of composters. I was dreaming about a website that made it so easy so find your local composter. Please add yourself to the map or share with other compost enthusiasts you know.
My dream is that Atlanta will host so many local composting sites that we will all get a rebate since we will save so much money on waste dumping fees at the landfill.
https://www.makesoil.org/map
In March 2022, we received a $2,500 grant to promote community composting. Our group's goal was to divert compostable waste from the landfill by turning it into compost for our gardens. We have set up community compost sites throughout the West End, Sylvan Hills and Washington Park.
The update:
We have:
- connected with +100 neighbors about getting started with this free compost service.
- set up 10 community compost sites. Every resident in the West End lives within 0.5 miles of a community composting location.
- diverted 16,000 lbs of waste from the landfill!
- partnered with 5 local businesses to maximize our impact by collecting their food waste. Big thanks to Finca to Filter, Best End Brewing, Wild Heaven, Heaps, and Create ATL!
- donated compost to Rose Circle Garden
- conducted kid-friendly educational events at Create ATL
The ask:
- Keep up the good work! Continue to divert your food scraps by delivering them to your nearest compost site.
- Tell your neighbors by sharing this contact form: https://forms.gle/Rn8Es4PDZutHUTRAA
- Want finished compost for your spring garden? Need more buckets or information? Just ask!
Happy Composting!
-Ben Rybolt
You are received this email because you have expressed interest in composting with Waste Free West End.
Look how many neighbors have expressed interest in composting!
We can divert more waste collectively than we can individually, so invite your neighbors to join the compost collective :)
When you throw away food waste it contributes to methane in the atmosphere,. Methane is a potent greenhouse gas. When you compost your food waste, it contributes much less methane due to the differences between aerobic and anaerobic decomposition.
We compost for our gardens AND our planet.
We have opened a new Community Compost Site in the West End near RDA and Holderness. Now all west end residents live within ~0.5 miles from a community composting site. In the future, I would love to report that all residents live within 1 block of a drop site!
We have also added another site on Beecher who will help us process kitchen scraps from our business partners: Finca-to-Filter, Best End Brewing, Wild Heaven Brewery, and Heaps.
While promoting composting locally, we have also expanded our reach and and partnered with Volkstuin Farm in Austell to share our vision of community composting.
Go check out their farm and restaurant.
Please, continue to support these great businesses and their efforts to divert waste:
https://fincatofilter.coffee/
https://www.bestendbrewing.com/
https://wildheavenbeer.com/
https://www.heapspies.com/about
https://www.volkstuin.us/
I saw this statue on KSU's campus recently. The inscription says: " We travel together, passengers in a little spaceship, dependent on its vulnerable reserves of air and soil, all committed, for our safety, to its security and peace. Preserved from annihilation only by the care, the work, and the love we give our fragile craft."
As we mark the milestone of 3 tons of waste diverted from the landfill, I celebrate that we had some impact on our planets reserves of soil and air.
Keep up the good work,
Happy Composting
Status Update: We have diverted 2.5 tons of waste from the landfill! A big thank you to all who have contributed food scraps.
We currently have 6 compost drop sites shown in the map below. We would love to open 1-2 more in the coming months.
If you want to start composting or already have a pile and want to invite your neighbors to join please reach out.
Our newest site is located at Create ATL next to the Finca to Filter coffee pop-up (corner of Bonnie Brae and Allene Ave), swing by get a coffee and checkout the fun art and outdoor space.
