That moldy cucumber in the back of the crisper drawer is OK. So are bones, houseplants and coffee grounds. But participants in Madison鈥檚 pilot program to compost organic waste need to do a better job of separating their trash from their biodegradables, city recycling coordinator Bryan Johnson said Monday.
In an email to residents who volunteered for the program, Johnson clicked off a list of no-nos, including no more waxy paper, potting soil, wine corks or crustacean shells in the organic bin. The biggest offender: plastic bags.
鈥淲e still have too many people using plastic bags,鈥� Johnson said. 鈥淲e need to stop using plastic bags in the organics container.鈥�
Drivers pay attention to bags or other contaminants they see as they dump the black organic waste carts into their trucks, Johnson said. If a cart has banned materials, 鈥淚 will send a letter instructing the homeowner to change their habits and to ask questions if they need help in figuring out if something is appropriate for organics or not,鈥� Johnson said in his email. 鈥淥therwise, if the contamination continues, we will be forced to remove that home from the program.鈥�
According to Blue Ribbon Organics, the compost company that accepts Madison鈥檚 organic waste, capital city composters barely meet the grade. On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being the worst and 10 the best, the city鈥檚 last load of food waste was a 6, Johnson said.
鈥淭his represents an improvement,鈥� Johnson said. 鈥淚t was described as 鈥榖y far the cleanest鈥� we鈥檝e delivered to them, which is fantastic, but a 6 is still a 6. We can do better.鈥�
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