Ann Arbor Kicks off Winter Compost Collection

The City of Ann Arbor began offering monthly winter curbside compost cart collection on Jan. 3, 2022. 

The monthly pick-ups will occur the first full week of each month, with curbside compost car​t service taking​ place during the weeks of Jan. 3, Feb. 7 and March 7, 2022. Residents will therefore have their compost cart serviced, once a month, on their regular curbside service day. Regular weekly compost pickups will begin again early April 2022.

Methane is 26 times more potent than carbon dioxide as a greenhouse gas and is a significant contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions. Decomposing organic material in anaerobic conditions — by microbes in the absence of oxygen — releases methane into the atmosphere. Anaerobic fermentation is common in landfill and open stockpiles such as manure piles. Global emissions from waste have almost doubled since 1970 and now produce 3 percent of anthropogenic (human origin) emissions (IPCC 2019). About half of these emissions come from the anaerobic fermentation of solid waste disposal on land.

• Only compost carts will be serviced during the winter months. 
• Paper yard bags or bundled branches will n​ot be collected.​
• ​Food scraps/waste, including meat and bones, are required to be in Biodegradable Products Institute (BPI) certified​ or paper grocery bags to keep material from freezing to the carts.
• Excess liquid should be drained to prevent the bags from deteriorating. 

Compost cart winter tips

Winter means little to no leaves or yard waste, so there should be plenty of room for​ plate scrapings, food scraps and other food compostables in the compost cart. Here are a few ideas to that may help:

• Drain out as much liquid from food scraps before placing them in a BPI certified bag and into your compost cart. It is advised that food scraps be double bagged during the winter, utilizing both a BPI and paper yard bag. ​
• Place an opened paper yard-waste bag inside the compost cart to hold the food scraps. 
• Put 1-2 feet of leaves or a couple pieces of flattened cardboard (1-2 large pizza boxes are perfect) at the bottom of the com​post cart before adding produce. This buffer at the bottom of the cart allows the materials to slide out more easily and not freeze to the cart.
• ​To keep the compost cart from getting messy, wrap drippy wet items (e.g., coffee grounds, melon rinds) in 1-2 sheets of compostable paper towels before putting into the compost cart.​
• If your neighborhood has clever raccoons, secure all cart lids with a bungee cord. (Remove bungees when your carts are put at the curb.) 
• Rinse out your cart, if temperatures allow, with non-toxic soap and water and empty onto your grass or gravel, never down the storm drain. ​​​

If you have questions or concerns regarding your recycling/trash dumpsters, trash or compost cart collection, please contact the City of Ann Arbor at 734-994-2807 or email them at customerservice@a2gov.org.