Policy

The library encourages composting in each location as possible and practical. Please follow the guidelines below if your library elects to start this project independently.  The Central Library participates in the City of Portland's commercial composting program. See the Central-specific guidelines for what to put in and what to leave out below***

Rationale

In order to keep a large amount of compostable waste out of the trash and meet the County guidelines of recovering at least 75% of our waste, the County offers help with composting at your work site.

APPLICATION: You may order a five-gallon bucket from the County Office of Sustainability (recyclinginfo@multco.us) to collect paper towels (except at Central) and kitchen scraps in the staff  kitchen area.  

At Central only  

A collection bin is located in the break room on the 4th floor.  

***Items to compost at Central:

• Meat, poultry, fish, shellfish, bones
• Eggs and eggshells, cheese, dairy products
• Bread, baked goods, pasta, rice, beans, nuts, seeds
• Coffee grounds and filters, tea bags (non-plastic)
• Vegetables and fruit
• Spoiled food

Items to leave out at Central:  all non-food items labeled "biodegradable", "made from plants" or "compostable"; cardboard and paper towels.  

At any other locations that compost

Compostable materials include coffee grounds and paper filters, tea bags, fruit and vegetable scraps, plant scraps, rice and pasta, bread, eggshells, hair.

LEAVE OUT:  meat, fish, bones, dairy products, oils or fats, sauces, ashes, pet waste, weed seeds (branches, woody twigs)

Set up an Earth Machine or, ideally, two on library premises (if space allows). 

Managing an On-site Compost Pile

2 parts brown + 1 part green

The best mix of nutrients for the microorganisms is two parts carbon-rich "brown" materials, such as dried leaves, mixed with one part nitrogen-rich "green" materials, such as grass clippings. A compost pile with these proportions of brown to green will promote large populations of microorganisms that will heat up yard debris and produce compost quickly. Other proportions of brown to green will create good compost, but will decompose more slowly.

Turn it! Turn the pile occasionally to keep oxygen flowing.  This helps the materials decompose more quickly.

Maintain moisture. A healthy compost pile should feel like a wet sponge that has been wrung out. If the compost is too wet, turn the pile and add dry, coarse material such as paper towels, straw, wood chips, or newspaper. If the compost is too dry, add enough water to moisten the pile without soaking it. 

Uses for Compost:

Compost contains nutrients and holds them in the soil until plants can use them. It also loosens and aerates clay soils, and retains water in sandy soils. Here are some common ways to use finished compost:

1. Soil amendment: Mix 2 to 5 inches of compost into vegetable and flower gardens each year before planting.
2. Potting mixture: Add one part compost to two parts commercial potting soil, or make your own mixture by using equal parts of compost and sand or perlite.
3. Mulch: Spread an inch or two of compost around annual flowers and vegetables, and up to 6 inches around trees and shrubs.
4. Top dressing for lawn: Mix finely sifted compost with sand and sprinkle evenly over lawns.