WHITE PLAINS, NY — County Executive Robert P. Astorino will officially launch the second phase of his Food Waste Reduction initiative – which focuses on collecting food waste and turning it into compost that will be used in gardens and parks throughout Westchester – during a ribbon cutting ceremony at 11 a.m. on Friday, November 20 at the Household Material Recovery Facility (H-MRF), 15 Woodlands Road in Valhalla.
The event will include a demonstration of the county’s new composting machine – “The Rocket” – and media will have the opportunity to speak with trained composters from Arc of Westchester, a nonprofit that serves individuals with autism and other developmental disabilities.
Who: County Executive Robert P. Astorino
Tibi Guzman, Associate Executive Director/Chief Operating Officer, Arc of Westchester
Laura Rossi, Executive Director, Westchester Community Foundation
Thomas Lauro, Commissioner, Westchester County Department of Environmental Facilitie
When: Friday, November 20 at 11 a.m.
Where: Household Material Recovery Facility, 15 Wood Road, Valhalla
Contacts: Regina Moore, Arc of Westchester
(914) 495-4573 FREE, rmoore@arcwestchester.org
Christina Rae, Buzz Creators, Inc. for Westchester Community Foundation
(914) 610-8558 FREE, crae@buzz-creators.com
Elena Rogliano, Westchester County
(914) 995-2933 FREE, erogliano@westchestergov.com
Astorino’s Food Waste Reduction initiative was first announced in his 2015 State of the County Address. It is a unique partnership between Westchester County, Arc of Westchester, Westchester Community Foundation, Food Bank for Westchester, Westchester Community College and Westchester Medical Center.
The program focuses on collecting food waste from the medical center and college, which is then composted with the help of trained teams from Arc. The enriched soil then goes to the Food Bank for its community gardens and the county’s Department of Public Works for use on county grounds.
“The Rocket” – a composter for on-site treatment of food waste – was purchased by the county’s Department of Environmental Facilities to be housed at the H-MRF. The machine’s advanced system provides a clean and simple way for food waste to be treated after its disposal turned into high quality compost.