What is Composting?
Composting is recycling organic matter, such as yard waste or food scraps, to make a nutrient-rich enhancement for soil. In Montgomery County and Bethesda, we take composting seriously! The Montgomery County Department of Environmental Protection provides bins to compost yard debris for County residents and businesses free of charge at one of three Bethesda locations, including Bethesda Green's main offices. Additionally, several local businesses are available to help residents and businesses compost food scraps and organic waste that don't have the capacity to it themselves.
Click on one of the organizations to learn more about composting options!
growingSOUL (Sustainable Opportunities for Universal Living)
growingsoul.org
We have begun by "growing" our own soil from our communty's leftover food scraps, coffee grounds, leaves, and wood chips. We collect the organic wasted in our recycled diesel truck fueled by straightwaste vegetable oil. To kill off pathogens these items are placed in standing piles until they reach 145 degrees. The compost, mixed with a little coconut coir toretain moisture and fertilized with worm castings, creates "soil with SOUL!"
Compost-ABLE performs comprehensive waste audits to determine the composition of your waste stream. After performing waste audits, we will advise your organization on how best to deal with your waste and identify select vendors in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan region to haul organic waste, recyclables and solid waste to the appropriate facilities.
The Compost Crew is a weekly in-home pick-up service currently serving Montgomery County and Northwest DC. We provide a gamma-sealed bin and bio-degradable bags for our customers or "crewmembers" who then fill them with their organic waste. We pick-up from people's homes and restaurants on a weekly basis, and deliver all of the waste to our partner, growingSOUL (listed above), for composting. After six months, crewmembers can request a portion of the weight of the waste they provided us in the form of high-grade compost. In following with the Crew's primary objective of getting as many people composting as possible, we are offering the first month of service for only $9!
We deploy a clean, convenient and cost-effective pick-up service for your organic waste. Then we deliver these materials to a nearby not-for-profit urban farm, where the compost is transformed into the fertile soil needed to grow nutritious food for the local community. CompostCab makes it easy to compost in the city.
We offer a food composting service to food-related businesses. By composting organics, we reduce greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to global warming, contribute to cleaner local water ecosystems, preserve biodiversity, and promote healthier living and communities.