10 Sep Victory! Curbside Composting Saved (for now)

Guest Post – from Andrew Dobbs with Texas Campaign for the Environment

We won! (For now).

Thanks to letters, calls, emails, and social media actions from hundreds of residents, the Austin City Council today authorized the first pieces of a curbside composting program that will reach every Austin household served by the City as part of the City’s budget. This is a huge step forward for Zero Waste and climate protection.

The council did not even take a vote on the idea of making this program subscription-only because they knew that it wouldn’t pass. That’s a testament to the power of all the people who have reached out to their councilmembers on this issue. But now is not the time to rest on our laurels. There will be more votes on this program in the future, and this episode shows us that we need to continue building a strong base of support for Zero Waste here in Austin. All Councilmembers need to know that their constituents want a cleaner, healthier future. We will be pushing to make sure composting is done right and implemented as quickly as possible, and we want to make sure that this vital service is available to those in condos and apartments as well. Stay tuned—we’ll need your help again!

If you are looking for a chance to celebrate this victory and all of our work, please join us on September 26 for our Fifth Annual Trash Makeover Challenge Fashion Show. This once-a-year party brings together Austin’s environmental community and Texas’ fashion community. It is always a blast, with complementary custom cocktails, silent auction, delicious hors d’ouvres provided by the Salt Lick and Barr Mansion, and a dance party after the fashion show. We would love for you to be there with us at the North Door at 7 pm.

Important: this year we will NOT have tickets for sale at the door of the event, so make sure to buy your tickets now online. We also still have sponsorships available with a variety of awesome perks. Let us know if you are interested in learning more about sponsoring by calling us at 512-326-5655.

Thank you again for swinging into action when we really needed it. We hope you’ll join us at theTrash Makeover Challenge on the 26^th. We will be in touch as we move forward in the effort for Zero Waste. Thanks to your support we are still on track—let’s keep up the good work!