Powers Promotes Composting for Earth Day

Council Member Keith Powers kicked off Earth Day activities early on Wednesday with the opening of a food scrap drop-off site at Dag Hammarskjold Plaza in Midtown East in effort to promote composting and recycling.

Powers, who represents District 4, brought some whimsy to the event, cutting through a string of banana peels in place of a ribbon to commemorate the spring opening of the site where scraps are collected for composting.

“We have a duty to our city and the environment to have sites like the one at Dag Hammarskjold Plaza,” Powers, who is currently running unopposed to retain his seat on the Council, said in a statement. “New Yorkers want to do their part to make the world a better place, and composting counts.”

At the event, Powers was joined by Assembly Member Harvey Epstein, who posted to Twitter, saying composting is a simple thing every New Yorker can do for the environment.

The composting effort is a collaboration between Friends of Dag Hammarskjold Plaza, the Lower East Side Ecology Center and the city’s Department of Sanitation. The LES Ecology Center picks up the food scraps from the plaza – which is located at East 47th St. between UN Plaza & Second Ave. – and transports them to East River Park, where it is turned into compost. The finished compost is used to rebuild soil across the city’s community gardens, school, tree beds and parks.

Acceptable food scraps include: Fruits, vegetables, eggshells, coffee, tea, nuts, dried flowers and houseplants, rice, pasta, bread, and grains.

Meat, fish, and dairy, as well as BPI-certified compostable plastic products, will not be accepted at the site. The site is open for drop-off every Wednesday from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Here’s a list of food scrap drop-off sites in our Manhattan neighborhoods:

UPPER WEST SIDE

97th Street Green Market - West 97th St. and Amsterdam Ave.

Fridays, 8:00AM - 12:30 PM

Reclaimed Organics Pop-Up Drop-Off - West 107th and Columbus Ave.

Wednesdays, 4:00 PM-6:00 PM

79th Street Green Market - 77th Street between Columbus Ave. and Central Park West

Sundays 9:00AM - 3:00PM

Hudson River Park Pier 96 Boathouse at West 55th St.

Every day 7:00AM - 7:00PM

UPPER EAST SIDE & EAST HARLEM

East 96th Street Food Scrap Drop-off - 96th St. & Lexington Ave.

Fridays 7:30AM - 11:30AM

Pleasant Village Community Garden - 342 Pleasant Ave., New York, NY 10035

Every day, Dawn-Dusk

Lydia’s Magic Garden - 1665 Park Avenue, between 117th and 118th Streets

Sunday: 3-4 PM; Mon., Tues., & Wed.: 1-2 PM; Friday: 8-9 AM

CHELSEA

Hudson River Park’s Chelsea Waterside Park at West 23rd St. - Near the playground

Every day 7:00AM - 7:00PM

Eighth Ave. & 23rd St. - North side of West 23rd St., just east of Eighth Ave.

Wednesdays 9:00AM - 2:00PM

Hudson River Park’s 14th Street Park at Tenth Ave. -Southwest corner of 15th St. and Tenth Ave.

Every day 7:00AM - 7:00PM

DOWNTOWN

Bowling Green Greenmarket - Broadway at Battery Place

Tuesdays 8:00AM - 10:30AM