DPW Smart Bins Reaches 1 Million-Pound Collection Milestone Thanks to Residents’ Food Waste Recycling Efforts

(Washington, DC) - As District residents are increasingly dropping off their food waste in the Department of Public Works’ (DPW) network of Smart Composting Bins, the agency has reached a major sustainability milestone, collecting 1 million pounds of compostable material.

The achievement marks a major environmental benchmark reached at an unprecedented pace across the District’s 31 Food Waste Smart Bins. It also represents one million pounds of food scraps diverted from landfills and transformed into nutrient-rich compost, reducing greenhouse gas emissions while helping build healthier soils. Composting one million pounds of food waste instead of landfilling it has the equivalent benefit of growing 3500 trees over 10 years.

“Collecting this much food waste in the 18 months we’ve had the bins means a significant number of citizens are using them,” said DPW Director Anthony Crispino, adding that nearly 10 percent of all of the food waste DPW has collected in the past decade has come from the agency’s food waste bins. “Reaching one million pounds is a remarkable milestone because it belongs to the people of the District. Their everyday actions are making an extraordinary impact on our environment in multiple ways.”

DPW will begin the roll out of an additional of 20 new Smart Composting Bins this fall, which will significantly expand access to the program, making it easier than ever for residents to participate in the District’s efforts to reduce waste, combat climate change and move toward a more sustainable future. To date, nearly 10,000 citizens have registered to use the bins.

Since 2014, DPW’s food waste diversion programs — including residential curbside collection, weekend farmers market drop-off sites, and 24-hour smart bins — have collected more than 11 million pounds of food waste for composting. Please visit the food waste drop off map to see all DPW smart bin locations.

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