Frequently Asked Questions

• Keep your kitchen clean! Folks who divert their food scraps from their garbage can to our compost bins keep a cleaner and less smelly kitchen. Members have reported taking out their garbage less and generating less food waste in the long term.  
• It's all about the soil! Compost can support thousands upon thousands of microorganisms found in the soil. It supports the organisms and can hold 5x's its weight in water. When applied to tree lawns, yards, and neighborhoods, it can help offset rainwater runoff and clean our waters from 65%-90% of pollutants before making it to the wastewater treatment plants. 
• Support local community members! Rust Belt Riders was founded by Rust Belt residents to support our community and make healthy soil. RBR founders knew the importance that composting has in and on our environment and our economy. For every composting facility there are 4x's as many jobs as landfills. By composting you are helping regenerate the Rust Belt and repurpose food scraps into soil building compost!  
• Environmental impact! By composting your food scraps, rather than putting them in the trash, or down the garbage disposal, you prevent methane from entering the atmosphere. Food scraps that are not composted properly and find their way to the landfill generate methane. Methane, a greenhouse gas 28-26 times more potent than carbon, accelerates climate change. 

1. Sign Up for Free Online: Use Beachwood's Rust Belt Riders registration form found here.
2. Collect Food Scraps at Home: Scraps should be collected in a 5-gallon bucket with a lid. All food scraps accepted. For a detailed list, visit rustbeltriders.com/whatcanicompost.
3. Bring Food Scraps to the Drop-Off Bins: Simply bring food scraps to our city drop-off bins co-located with the recycling bins near the Beachwood Community Center. It is recommended that your deposit your food scraps weekly.
4. Unlock Bin with Your Code: Use the unique code received during registration to unlock the drop-off bin.
5. Dump Food Scraps into the Bin and Re-Lock: Deposit your food scraps inside and securely lock the bin for the next participant to use.

It's FREE! Simply sign up online to gain access.

From raw vegetables, to cooked foods, citrus to coffee grounds, bones, meat, dairy, raw vegetables, to cooked fruits, ALL food scraps can be accepted along with BPI certified compostable products. The Betterbin app is recommended as a database of compostable items.

Human waste: including diapers, used tissues, dyed cardboard, pizza boxes, pet food, q-tips, rubber bands and twist-ties, staples (some tea bags use them!), plastic wrap, junk mail, pet waste, and any non-BPI certified compostable products (if it doesn’t have ‘BPI certified’ on it- it’s not!).

A 5-gallon bucket with a lid is recommended. You should plan on depositing your scraps into the community collections bins once per week. You can line your bucket with a paper bag or a BPI certified compostable bag. Or put your food scraps directly into the bin itself! No bag required. DO NOT use plastic bags.

Visit their website at rustbeltriders.com!