Rain barrel, backyard composter sale in Southold
Water conservation and waste reduction are issues close to home for Southold Town residents. Through Southold’s Waste Management District, community members can now purchase backyard composters, rain barrels and other composting tools at discounted rates.
The program was made possible by a partnership between BrandBuilders, a marketing company, and the town.
Systern rain barrels, a 55-gallon barrel made of 50% recycled materials with mosquito mesh used to collect rainwater from roofs, are available for a $65 purchase through midnight on Thursday, July 24, at southold.compostersale.com.
The barrels can help conserve municipal water supply, slash household water bills up to 40% and easily accommodate existing downspouts, according to the town’s advertisement.
Nick Krupski, Southold’s solid waste coordinator, noted the concerns over water conservation in Southold in an interview with The Suffolk Times.
“Anything we can do to help limit what we’re pumping out of the ground or out of Suffolk County Water Authority’s wells to put on lawns and gardens is going to be a huge help,” he said. “And also by capturing that water within a rain barrel, you’re capturing more than might make it back to the aquifer the way the ground water flows here.”
An 80-gallon backyard compost machine, the Earth Machine, is also available for a $65 purchase at southold.compostersale.com, and can compost up to 50% of household waste. It also features easy, snap-together assembly with adjustable ventilation and an easy access retrieval door, according to the town’s advertisement. Its purchase includes a 10-year warranty.
Mr. Krupski said the backyard composter also aids in convenience for residents, allowing them to scrape food off their kitchen plates into their own composter instead of having to drive to the town’s transfer station.
Composting helps reduce dependence on chemical fertilizers and conserves water through soil moisture retention. It also reduces runoff and flooding by enhancing soil’s capacity to absorb rain water.
“Let’s turn waste into wealth — one backyard at a time,” Inga Van Eysden, deputy chair of the Southold Town Conservation Advisory Committee, said in a news release. The committee oversees the town’s Climate Smart Certification. “The average U.S. household throws out over $1,800 worth of food each year. When those scraps go to a landfill, they generate methane. When we compost them, we create fertile soil, support pollinators and even capture carbon.”
Purchases can be picked up Saturday, July 26, between 9 a.m. and noon at the Southold Town Transfer Station, 6155 Cox Lane, Cutchogue.
Volunteers from ReWild North Fork and the North Fork Environmental Council will help with distribution.
A network of trained volunteers called “compost coaches” will also be announced July 26 at the pick-up site. The coaches will offer guidance to help households and business compost successfully as part of the first program of the newly-formed Long Island Organics Initiative.
“The Long Island Organics Initiative establishes a region-wide network to scale and share actionable programs that help communities and households reduce, reuse and compost food waste — improving both our environment and quality of life,” LIOI cofounder Marjorie Spitz said in a news release. “Building on the success of backyard bin programs in Hempstead and North Hempstead, we’re proud to help towns implement their own programs.”
Through these alike initiatives — and the materials they offer, such as the aforementioned rain barrels and composters — Southold Town hopes to become a more sustainable community.
“This is a big moment to advance soil health,” ReWild board member Gloria Frazee said in a news release. She is coordinating East Hampton’s compost sale program. “Backyard composting is a critical step toward healthy soils, resilient gardens and protecting pollinators.”
