You are reading

Curbside Composting Will be Making a Return in the Fall

Curbside composting will return to the streets of Queens in the fall  (Photo via makecompost.nyc)

Aug. 9, 2021 By Michael Dorgan

Curbside composting will be making a return in the fall.

The Dept. of Sanitation (DSNY) announced last week that it will begin its free service of collecting food scraps, food-soiled paper and other organic waste from outside homes and residential buildings in select areas sometime in October.

Curbside composting was suspended by the city in May 2020 following budget concerns shortly after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Around 3.5 million New Yorkers were using the service before it was put on hold, the DSNY said.

However, the DSNY announced last week that the service will resume in the coming months.

“We are very happy to have received the funding needed to help restart our curbside composting program,” Sanitation Commissioner Edward Grayson said in a statement.

The service will be offered in the areas marked in orange. However, residents in those zones must register for the service once again. (Source DSNY)

Curbside composting keeps certain waste items out of landfills, thereby reducing greenhouse gas emissions, according to the DSNY. The scraps are then turned into nutrient-rich soil–which is used as fertilizer at city parks, among other uses.

DSNY workers will recommence picking up waste in many areas of Queens. The pickups will be in neighborhoods such as Sunnyside, Long Island City, Woodside, Maspeth, Ridgewood, Middle Village, Flushing, College Point, Bayside, Laurelton and more. Find out if your neighborhood is covered by clicking on the map here.

However, residents who live in these areas must register for the program.

The DSNY is calling on residents who live outside the areas currently being served to make a request. The agency is looking for input as to where the service should be expanded.

The program is available to residents who live in buildings of all sizes, although residents who live in multi-unit apartment buildings must have management approval.

Interested participants are asked to complete the registration form by clicking here.

If you do not have a DSNY-issued brown bin, you can request one when you sign up and DSNY will deliver it before your service begins.

  • What Goes in the Brown Bin

ALL FOOD including:

  • coffee grounds and tea bags
  • shells (seafood, nut, and egg)
  • bones
  • spoiled and expired food
  • food soiled paper (napkins, towels, uncoated plates, bags, trays, boxes)

Yard and Plant Waste

DO NOT put in:

  • Trash of any kind including:
    • diapers and hygienic products
    • animal waste
    • wrappers and packaging
    • foam products
  • Recyclables including:
    • metal
    • glass
    • rigid plastic
    • beverage cartons
    • clean recyclable paper
    • cardboard
email the author: news@queenspost.com
No comments yet

Leave a Comment
Reply to this Comment

All comments are subject to moderation before being posted.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Recent News

Fresh Meadows MS-13 gang associate sentenced to nearly a half-century in prison for murder of Corona teen in Kissena Park: Feds

An MS-13 gang associate from Fresh Meadows was sentenced to 45 years in federal prison on Tuesday, Aug. 26, for the 2018 slaying of a Corona teenager in Flushing’s Kissena Park.

Juan Amaya-Ramirez, 27, and his co-defendant Oscar Flores-Mejia, 25, from Elmhurst, who is also an associate of the transnational criminal organization, pleaded guilty to the murder of 17-year-old Andy Peralta in Brooklyn federal court last September.

Queens Together launches ‘Unofficial US Open Dining Guide’ encouraging fans to sample restaurants along the 7 line

Aug. 20, 2025 By Shane O’Brien

The US Open returns to Flushing Meadows Corona Park this Sunday, with more than 1 million attendees anticipated to take mass transit to the iconic annual tennis event. With hundreds of thousands of fans set to take the 7 out to the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, there is a world of delicious local eateries lying beneath the elevated train tracks should any fan wish to stop en-route to the US Open.

Can Queens’ food scene thrive with both trucks and restaurants?

Aug. 19, 2025 By Jessica Militello

In Jackson Heights at 4 p.m. on a Thursday afternoon, Roosevelt Avenue is buzzing with energy as commuters file in and out of subway cars and onto the street and cars and trucks grapple to get down the busy road. The street is filled with rows of shops and restaurants, along with food carts, street vendors and food trucks along the avenue. The almost-but-not-quite the weekend lag leaves hungry commuters faced with another choice to make throughout their day and the array of food truck options in busy areas like Jackson Heights offers customers convenience and delicious food without breaking the bank, two features that can feel vital, particularly with rising costs of living and pressure from inflation.

Lithium-ion battery sparked Murray Hill house fire on Sunday evening: FDNY

FDNY fire marshals have determined that a Murray Hill house fire was caused by a lithium-ion battery on Sunday evening.

The FDNY responded to a report of a basement fire at 164-18 Pidgeon Meadow Rd., just before 7:30 p.m., where firefighters discovered approximately 100 lithium-ion batteries burning in the cellar. The property owner was operating an illegal lithium-ion battery repair business inside the home, and multiple micro-mobility devices and lithium-ion batteries were found in various states of disassembly and disrepair.