Denver Fire Department expands composting participation

Denver Public Works and the Denver Fire Department are expanding its partnership to promote the Denver Composts program, a report by 9News says. Denver Composts is a weekly curbside recycling program provided by the city of Denver.

Twenty fire stations are composting through the program and have since increased their recycling rate to 80 percent, the report says. Firefighters at Station No. 16 compost coffee grounds, old sandwiches and weeds from outside. The material is taken to a local facility where it’s composted over a period and used as soil amendment in the state for yards, gardens and agriculture.

Charlotte Pitt, a manager at Denver Recycles, says in the report that the city is lagging behind the rest of the U.S. in composting. The department found that 50 percent of what Denver residents throw away is compostable food waste and yard debris.

The report says residents who are not enrolled in the Denver Composts program will receive a mailer about how to subscribe to the service this month.

 According to the Denver Composts website, households can pay $29.25 every three months to compost yard debris, food scraps and nonrecyclable paper and plastic. Participants put their waste in green carts that are picked up at the curb. The number of participants in the program is limited and households will be provided collection services on a first come, first serve basis.