Category: Public Food Waste Drop-Off

Posted on

Open Hours

Updated September 15, 2023

Tuesdays 1:30 pm – 4 pm
Sundays 12 pm – 4 pm

Food Waste Drop-off: all year.
—We accept all food waste, incl. meats, bones, dairy, seafood, raw, cooked, oyster and clam shells, coconut shells, etc.
When bringing plant matter, please keep them separate from the food waste.
Leaf Drop-off: all year.
—We accept leaves, plant discards, tree branches, and potting soil ALL YEAR ROUND.

Posted on

Food Waste Drop-Off Notice, Updated

For our 24-hour drop-off to resume: 

  1. We need volunteers*.
    To volunteer, go to downtoearthgarden.org/volunteer (online signup form).
    * Goal: 14+ volunteers, 2 per day, each choosing a day/week, + backups.
  1. Sanitation (DSNY) to restart their Curbside Composting**.
    Resumption of DSNY’s pickup service depends on how many have signed up within the neighborhood. Please have your building consider signing up: nyc.gov/curbsidecomposting

** Curbside Composting (organic waste pickup) — Pre-pandemic, DSNY picked up about 40% of our food waste; we composted 60% in-garden.
So, in order for a 24-hour drop-off to not overwhelm us, we need both: volunteers and DSNY to resume their pickup.

For further information, visit downtoearthgarden.org/composting

Posted on

Food Waste Drop-Off Notice

For our 24-hour drop-off to resume again: 

  1. We need at least 11 volunteers (our pre-pandemic number), but now, ideally 14* or more to fully cover 7 days a week (2 volunteers per day).

* One of our main volunteers was able to do 3 or 4 days a week pre-pandemic, including covering for others; and now, only 1 day, maybe 2 days, a week. So, need more volunteers.

To volunteer, see downtoearthgarden.org/volunteer

  1. Sanitation (DSNY) is expected to restart their organic waste pickup this fall. Pre-pandemic, DSNY picked up about 40% of our food waste, while we were able to process 60% in-garden. So, in order to make sure our 24-hour drop-off will not overwhelm us, we need both: enough volunteers and DSNY to resume their pickup. 

For further information, visit downtoearthgarden.org/composting