What Becomes of Your St. Cloud Compost Bags

The city of St. Cloud picks up the clear/white compost bags from the street corner of St. Cloud residents Mondays from spring to fall.  St. Cloud Assistant Public Works Director Dan Legatt joined me on WJON.  He says the clear/white compost bags are made of corn starch and are biodegradable which means they break down over time.  These bags are picked up and dropped off at the St. Cloud compost site.  They are later picked up and brought to Creekside Soil in Hutchinson where the material is turned into black dirt.  Legatt says Creekside is another Government entity.  The material after it is processed in Hutchinson is returned to the compost site in St. Cloud as nutrient rich black dirt and is available for St. Cloud residents with a compost site pass.

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The yard waste which includes brush and sticks at the St. Cloud compost site also goes to Hutchinson according to Legatt.  He says Creekside Soil brings in a grinder to process the sticks and brush and then they bring it back to Hutchinson to include that with the compost bags.  All of the material is turned into nutrient rich black dirt and returned to the St. Cloud facility.  Legatt says Creekside Soil comes to get the material once a year usually in November.

Legatt says if people want to safely compost at home in a compost bin he has some suggestions.  He suggests that people turn their compost at least once a week, include a carbon, moisture, mix in vegetation from your garden in addition to leaves and grass from your yard.  He says food waste like crust from your pizza or egg shells could be included in your home compost bin to add variety and nutrients.

If you'd like to listen to my conversation with Dan Legatt it is available below.