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Seattle Parks and Recreation makes composting available at all facilities

Supporting a healthy environment is one of Seattle Parks and Recreation’s fundamental goals. We have done much over the years to support that – from the Paper Cuts initiative in the early 2000s to the LEED facilities that we build to our most recent Good Food initiative.

As of July 1, Seattle Parks and Recreation facility patrons and employees are be able to recycle food waste at every community center, pool, environmental learning center, crew quarters and office space that the department owns or operates.

This is a major milestone. By taking this step, we’re joining an effort that has already seen great successes.

The City of Seattle is a national leader in composting. Earlier this year Mayor Murray announced that the City is on track to recycle 19,000 additional tons of organic material. That’s the equivalent of 380 rail cars of waste diverted from a landfill. The City’s ultimate goal is to divert an additional 38,000 tons of compost per year.

And now Seattle Parks and Recreation will be a part of that.

We’ve had a food waste recycling committee of 20 employees working on this project for months. These dedicated Parks and Recreation employees have volunteered their time to helping figure out how to implement the program on such a large scale.

Seattle residents may already be accustomed to composting at home. Whether you’re a veteran composter or totally new to the concept, you may have a lot of questions about how this effort will take place and how to participate. You can learn more about successful composting in these Food Waste Recycling Guidelines.

Seattle Parks and Recreation is excited to be a part of the composting movement. This is an important step to take toward creating a more sustainable future.