Weekly curbside collection of residential compostables in the City of Ann Arbor resumes on Monday, April 5, 2010 on regular curbside trash pickup days. The compost program accepts yard trimmings such as leaves, plants, garden debris, twigs, and branches up to six inches in diameter and four feet in length. Since October 2009, Ann Arbor residents using optional compost carts may add uncooked fruits and vegetables—as well as grass clippings—inside compost carts for municipal collection. Saturday compost sales hours at the municipal Compost Center also begin in April.

Curbside compost collection guidelines Residents should set their compostables at the curb before 7 a.m. on their weekly waste collection day and use paper yard waste bags (available from local retailers) or city-approved compost carts (available for $50 each from the city’s Customer Service & Payment Center). Brush and tree limbs (up to 6” in diameter) may be tied into bundles up to 18 inches in diameter. Each bag or bundle of compostables has a maximum weight of 50 pounds. Paper yard waste bags with food scraps or grass clippings are not allowed outside of a compost cart in order to avoid attracting wildlife, generating odors, or creating unsafe conditions from wet, overweight, or broken paper bags at the curb. The compost program does not accept plastic bags, trash, stones, dirt, sod, animal waste, or logs over six-inches in diameter.

Compost cart sales The city sells authorized, municipal 96-, 64-, and 35-gallon compost carts for a one-time price of $50 each (same price for any size). Residents may purchase compost carts from the city’s Customer Service Center & Payment Center (734.99.GREEN) during weekday business hours at 220 E. Huron (and pay by cash, check, or credit card).

Compost Drop-Off Options Ann Arbor residents may also deliver a maximum of one cubic yard (6 paper bags) of yard waste, including grass clippings and produce, at no charge per visit, to Ann Arbor’s Municipal Compost Center, 4150 Platt Road, 734.794.6380. The Compost Center is open weekdays all year, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., and on Saturdays, from 8 a.m. to Noon, between April and June. Residents interested in using this free drop-off option must first drive over the scales and talk with the attendant at the Scalehouse window, located in the blue MRF building, before depositing materials at the Compost Center. Compostables may also be taken to the Drop-Off Station (DOS), 2950 E. Ellsworth, 734.971.7400, open Monday through Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and will be charged $2/bag or $14/cubic yard. Customers purchasing compost at the DOS will have the $3 entry fee waived for that visit.

Compost and Mulch Sales Finished municipal compost and mulch are available for sale from the Drop-Off Station and the municipal Compost Center, at temporarily-low bulk prices starting at $7/cubic yard, and lower rates for truckloads over 10 cubic yards ($5) and 25 cubic yards ($2.75) per load. Wood mulch, as available, is sold at the Compost Center. Compost and mulch are sold by the bushel and cubic yard at the Drop-Off Station, and optional delivery service is available from Recycle Ann Arbor. Interested buyers should phone in advance to check availability of mulch at both locations, and consult the current pricing rates at the Drop-Off Station at 734.971.7400. Customers purchasing compost at the DOS will have the $3 entry fee waived for that visit.

For 24-hour information on the city’s compost operations, more details on the expanded fruit and vegetable materials accepted for seasonal collection, and compost cart sales, call please 734.99.GREEN or view the city’s web site at www.a2gov.org/compost.

Nancy Stone is the Communications Liaison for Public Services at the City of Ann Arbor. She can be reached at nstone@a2gov.org. Visit www.a2gov.org for more information on local environmental topics including recycling, composting, water conservation, and choices for green living.

Your World provides local environmental information to our community. Contributing partners include: Washtenaw County’s Environmental Health Division; the nonprofit Recycle Ann Arbor; the City of Ann Arbor’s Public Services Area, Natural Area Preservation, Systems Planning programs for Energy, Environmental Coordination, Solid Waste, Transportation, and Water Resources.