Don’t toss that banana peel, chicken bone or coffee grounds into the garbage where it takes energy to burn. Instead put it in a compostable bag and bring it to Peekskill’s DPW drop off on Louisa Street beginning this Saturday, May 6. Thanks to an agreement with Westchester County, the city can collect food scraps that will be kept out of the waste stream and turned into compost. 

Peekskill’s Food Scrap Recycling Program debuts May 6 from 9 to 12 at the City of Peekskill DPW Garage on South and Louisa Streets. Food scraps cost money to burn and are a resource that can be turned into useful compost. When food scraps are sent to a landfill or incinerator this resource is lost. In a landfill, food scraps create methane, which is a potent greenhouse gas that traps carbon dioxide and contributes to global warming. When sent to Westchester’s incinerator at Charles Point, food scraps reduce the efficiency of the incinerator because they don’t burn easily. 

“Instead of wasting energy by trying to burn food, or creating methane from landfilling it, composting food scraps produces a useful and valuable product that gives back,” said the city’s Conservation Advisory Council. 

Items that can be brought to the food scrap drop off include: wrappers from sticks of butter, bones from fish and meat, paper towels, tissues and napkins, fruits and vegetables (with stickers, bans and ties removed) Any natural product that breaks down such as dairy products, bread and pasta, rice and grains, egg shells, chips and snacks, nuts and seeds, (shells are okay), leftover, spoiled and expired food (cooked is okay) coffee grounds, paper filters are okay, tea bags with staples removed. Wooden chopsticks, popsicle sticks and corks, cut flowers, compostable bags. 

Plastic bags, plastic packaging and wrappers are not allowed in the food scrap bins. Use only compostable bags, paper bags or no bags. Baby and hand wipes are not allowed in the bins. They are synthetic and will contaminate the compost. Pet waste is not accepted. 

Bins for kitchen countertops or a medium bin with a carrying handle are available from City Hall in the finance department. Compostable bags are also available for sale.