Put Your Food Waste in Your Yard Waste Cart!
Pierce County’s curbside residential yard waste program now accepts food waste! You can now put all food and yard waste in your existing yard waste container. Newly accepted items include dairy, eggs and shells, grains and bread, spoiled leftovers, and meat and poultry (including bones). Fruit and vegetable scraps, coffee grounds and filters, and tea bags were already accepted. These new guidelines apply across Pierce County, regardless of your service provider. Check out the new guidelines at PierceCountywa.gov/YardWaste.
No bags, cups, utensils, pizza boxes, or paper items, even if they are labeled “compostable or biodegradable.” These items will not break down in the system.
Preventing wasted food in the first place has the greatest environmental benefit. When food and yard waste end up at the landfill, the nutrients never return to the soil. The organic material rots and produces methane, a powerful greenhouse gas, but now your food scraps can be composted instead of buried in the landfill. Compost reduces soil erosion, improves water quality, helps store carbon and increases soil’s ability to retain water.
