At long last the Village Compost program is launching on January 1st! To celebrate this momentous occasion, the Village of Rhinebeck is hosting a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 1pm on Sunday, January 12. Mayor Gary Bassett will put out the huge scissors and cut an oversized ribbon tied around the food scraps collection dumpster in the municipal parking lot.
Members of the public and local leaders are invited to attend. Village Compost’s registered participants are encouraged to bring their buckets and ceremoniously dump their food scraps into the large, green compost collection container. “I’m so excited to dump in my food scraps and dance a little jig!” exclaimed Trustee Bertozzi, who, along with a team of volunteers, has been planning the program for years. Michael DeCola, owner of Ellerslie Stables and subcontractor for the program, will also be in attendance.
Village residents can register for the Village Compost program at www.rhinebeckcompost.org. Approved registrations are notified on Thursdays via email. The program is free, and participants can choose to receive a share of the finished compost each spring.
The large green dumpster acting as a central collection site will be a fixture in the municipal parking lot, in the area of the lot behind Aroi and by the Rhinebeck Farmers’ Market shed. Participants will be able to drop their food scraps any time they like, year round. The food scraps container will be locked to prevent illegal dumping and critters. Ellerslie Stables will be picking up the collection container on Monday mornings, incorporating the food scraps into the composting operation at the farm, and returning the container to the municipal parking lot. The program is funded by a $200,000 DEC grant, with a term of 7 years, with an option to continue the municipal-farm contract.
Join us on January 12 for high fives and food scraps!
For more info contact Village Trustee Vanessa Bertozzi