Compost

An estimate of 30-40% of food is wasted each year – composting is a great way to help change that! Here are some great options for composting in Salem – Curbside Composting, Drop Off Compost Bins at Mack Park, and Home Composting.  Read more about them below and find out which option might be best for you!

1. Curbside Composting

Click Here to learn about composting curbside in Salem with Black Earth or call them at  (978) 290-4610 for more information on signing up.

Join the many Salem residents who participate in curbside composting for just $11.99 a month for weekly pick-ups or $8.99/month for every other week pick-ups.

For a limited time, Salem residents joining Black Earth Compost as new subscribers will receive a free, 13-gallon curbside composting bin!

“I am very pleased that we’re able to offer this incentive program to encourage more curbside composting,” said Mayor Pangallo, “We’re working to minimize our solid waste tonnage and diverting food waste is a critical part of that effort. Not only is it better for the environment but by lessening our trash tonnage we can mitigate increases in disposal costs.”

To enroll in the curbside compost program and receive your FREE 13-gallon bin, please visit:  

Curbside Collection | Black Earth Compost

2. Mack Park Drop Off
Compost Bins 

  • Click Here to Register
  • Salem residents can drop off food waste and organics ONLY in brown paper bags or compostable bio bags. 
  • Please do not dump any yard waste, trash or recycling here. 
  • These bins are available 24/7 for you to drop off compost at your convenience, for free.  Please see the map below to see the exact location at Mack Park.
  • Click Here to Read More

3. Home Composting with The Earth Machine

Watch your food scraps turn into compost in your own backyard!

Please call DPS at 978-744-3302 to order a discounted, at home compost bin for $25 (1/2 price!) pictured to the right.

Click here for more information about how to compost with Earth Machine

4. Other At Home Methods

Did you know you could compost indoors with worms (vermicomposting), you can make your own pile in your back yard or try out another vessel like a tumbler?

Learn more about other ways to compost here and here!

Healthy plants grown in healthy soil do a better job of sucking CO2 out the the air we breath. Great job!

In 2015 alone, Salem diverted about 495 tons of organic waste from landfill or the incinerator.  Between 2014 when the program first started and 2017, Salem has diverted about 840 tons of organic waste from landfill or the incinerator.  In just four years, 840 tons of waste were not buried or burnt, but turned into a useful product.  Instead of generating more carbon, we generated nutrient rich compost. Participants were able to take home six free gallons of rich compost at the end of a year’s participation to use in their own gardens.