Denver’s initiative to expand compost services has shifted into high gear, with the city announcing plans to complete its citywide rollout by early next year. This accelerated timeline, a solid nine months ahead of schedule, is set to advance Denver’s waste diversion and emissions reduction goals while ensuring a high standard of customer service remains intact.
Amid a sea of compost carts poised for distribution, the Denver Department of Transportation and Infrastructure (DOTI) told residents to expect a letter in December, signaling the start of the opt-in phase for the compost program in their neighborhood. According to the
City and County of Denver
, it was announced that these 67,000 customers have until January 10, 2025, to select their preferred cart size, with deliveries slated for February and March. Mayor Mike Johnston emphasized the community’s clear desire for composting options, praising the expedited initiative to meet Denver’s climate responsibilities.
The city is also modifying its recycling collection schedule, starting January 6, 2025, to every other week. An earlier increase in the frequency of recycling pickups did not produce a substantial rise in collected recyclables, yet it added an extra 170,000 miles of travel per year for the collection vehicles. The new schedule is expected to cut down on fuel usage, contributing to further reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.
Further adjustments announced include changing the Large Item Pickup (LIP) service schedule, and moving from a four-week to a nine-week rotation in 2025. According to Amy Ford, Executive Director of DOTI, this change is aligned with the city’s waste diversion goals, discouraging excessive waste generation and encouraging residents to seek out alternatives to simply tossing items into the landfill. As obtained by the
City and County of Denver
, Ford assured customers that these revised collection schedules will lead to improved and more reliable service, aiming to improve the current 90% route completion rate for pickups.
Lastly, it’s important to note that there won’t be any changes to the current trash collection fees in 2025, with costs still tied to the size of residents’ trash carts. Since the late summer of 2023, Denver has been rolling out compost services, initially providing compost carts to every customer, which led to higher contamination rates. The shift to an opt-in system in 2024 saw a significant dip in contamination, allowing the city to deploy composting services more rapidly and effectively to its constituents.
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