Composting at the Assiginack Waste Diversion Depot

Using your kitchen-catcher and organics bin to collect your food and organic household waste for composting is easy to do! Just follow these simple steps.

1) Put your food and organic household waste into your kitchen-catcher.

• Keep your kitchen-catcher in a convenient location, like under the kitchen sink or on your counter.

• You can use a liner to help keep your kitchen-catcher clean and to minimize wetness and odours in your organics bin.  Acceptable liners include paper/cellulose bag liners, other compostable bags, or simply use newspaper or paper towel.

2) Empty your kitchen-catcher daily into your organics bin.

• Store your organics bin in a convenient location outside or in your garage, where you can access it easily.  You can keep it where you normally keep your garbage.

3) Take it to the Assiginack Waste Diversion Depot and drop your organics in the organics drop-off bin.

What Goes in the Organics Bin

Acceptable Kitchen-Catcher and Organics Bin Liners

If you choose to line your kitchen-catcher with bags, please ensure you are using acceptable liners.  Plastic liners will not be accepted.

If purchasing liners, ensure you only choose certified compostable liners that include the Biodegradable Products Institute (BPI) logo on the box, as seen here:

Tips for your Organics Bin

Kitchen-catcher

Use and Storage

• Line your kitchen-catcher with newspaper, paper bags, boxboard or an acceptable liner (see above).

• Keep your lid tightly closed.

• Empty your kitchen-catcher into your organics bin regularly.

• Wrap food waste in newspaper or paper towel.

• Put meat and fish scraps in a paper bag or wrap tightly in newspaper or paper towel. If space permits, refrigerate or freeze smelly items until you can take it to the waste diversion depot.

• If suitable, switch your kitchen-catcher with your kitchen garbage bin.  You’ll be surprised how much less space you need for garbage now!

Reducing Odour

• Spray your kitchen-catcher with vinegar or sprinkle it with baking soda.

• Place food waste in used paper boxes or bags, like empty cracker or cereal boxes or flour bags.

Keeping it Clean

• Wash or rinse your kitchen-catcher after you empty it. 

• Drain as much liquid from your food waste before putting it in your kitchen-catcher.

Other Tips

• Capture organics in other rooms of your home.  Set a paper liner bag in your bathroom to collect tissues, hair clippings, and non-recyclable paper, for example.

Organics Bin

Use and Storage

• Store your organics bin in a shady, well ventilated area.

• When cleaning out your refrigerator, try waiting until the day before take your material to the waste diversion depot.

• Take your organics to the waste diversion depot on a regular basis, even if the bin is not full.

Reducing Odour

• Odour is often caused by too much moisture.  Reduce moisture by layering dry (paper or leaves) and wet (food waste) materials in your organics bin.  This will help wet or smelly organics dry out and start the composting process.  Layer organics by placing a layer of wet waste and then a layer of dry waste (soiled paper or leaves).

Keeping it Clean

•  Line the bottom of your organics bin with crumpled newspaper or soiled paper/cardboard. This will keep the material from sticking or freezing to the bottom.

• Use a paper liner, like a yard waste bag.

Pest Control

Pests (such as flies, maggots and other critters) have always been a commonly occurring problem with waste collection programs, even before organics programs were introduced.  While pests may be difficult to eliminate completely, these tips will help you get rid of them or (even better) avoid them altogether.

• Maggots are fly larvae and occur when flies lay eggs on organic waste.  They typically have a 7-day life cycle, depending on temperatures and other conditions such as moisture.  Discourage flies from laying their eggs in your organics bin by reducing odours and reducing their access to food waste in the organics bin.

• Certain odours will repel flies, such as pennyroyal, camphor, eucalyptus, mint or bay.  Try hanging some bruised leaves of these herbs in clusters, or apply dabs of herbal oil to the outside of your organics bin.

• Flies are attracted to protein, like meat and bones.  Try waiting until the night before you go to the waste diversion depot to place these items in the organics bin.  If space permits, place these items in a paper container (e.g., an empty paper ice cream container) and store them in your freezer.  In any case, wrap meat and seafood scraps before placing in your kitchen-catcher or your organics bin.

• Line the outer rim of your organics bin with salt or spray with vinegar to keep flies from entering.  You can also sprinkle rock salt or garden lime inside the bin.

• If animals are a problem, store the bin away from fences, trees, tables or chairs.

If you get flies or maggots in your organics bin: 

• During the summer, cover your organics bin with black plastic sheeting (e.g., a garbage bag) to trap heat and kill off the flies.  Flies are most active during temperatures of 20 - 25ºC and become undetectable above 45ºC and below 10ºC.

• Cover maggots with powdered garden lime, salt or vinegar.

• Sprinkle diatomaceous earth on the critters and over the organics bin waste. Diatomaceous earth is a natural product that kills maggots, slugs, etc.  Check garden centres and nurseries for availability.

• Clean your organics bin thoroughly after the next collection day, using water and a light detergent or a water/vinegar solution.  Leave no residue in the bottom of the bin and ensure it is dry before use.

Backyard Composting

Can I backyard compost at home?

Of course you can!  Compost your food and garden waste in your own back yard, and reap its benefits at home!  Compost is a dark, earthy, nutrient-rich material that can be added to gardens, household plants, or sprinkled over lawns. It’s like giving them a vitamin boost!

No composter?  No problem!  For a limited time, purchase a backyard composter at the Municipal Office.