NYC Compost Project in Manhattan

The Lower East Side Ecology Center operates the NYC Compost Project in Manhattan, a compost education and outreach program funded by the NYC Department of Sanitation, Bureau of Waste Prevention, Reuse and Recycling. Check out the NYC WasteLess calendar for upcoming composting workshops (select “Organic Waste” category under “Browse Events”).

Working with residents, public schools, community gardens, and organizations, the NYC Compost Project in Manhattan offers workshops on both indoor and outdoor composting, and provides technical assistance to gardens, buildings, and institutions who wish to compost. Please see our calendar for a list of workshops or contact us through the Compost Hotline.

The Compost Hot Line

A composting hotline available by phone (212-477-3155) and email Monday through Friday for problem solving in the battle against fruit flies and strange smells. This is also the place to request a workshop.

Indoor Worm Composting

Want to compost, and don’t have a yard? No problem - Indoor composting involves using eisenia fetida (red wiggler worms) to help break down food scraps right under your kitchen sink. The worms need a bin (homemade or purchased) with air holes and bedding consisting of damp shredded newspaper. You can add up to 3 pounds of food scraps per week to the bin and in 3 months you will have your own homemade compost. Join us at one of our workshops to receive a coupon for a discounted 'worm condo'. Check out indoor composting with a worm bin for step-by-step directions on how to build your own worm bin.

Outdoor Composting

For those with yards, terraces, roof-tops, or community gardens, you can compost your food and garden waste on site eliminating the need to buy and transport expensive fertilizers for your plants. Combine your chopped-up garden browns (like fall leaves and dried out plants) with fresh garden trimmings and food scraps in your compost bin and mix at least once a month. For the complete beginner, please join us at one of our Backyard Composting Basics classes where low-cost bins are available for purchase. For do-it-yourself directions, check out outdoor composting.

Children’s Worm Composting Workshop

Taking waste reduction to the next generation! By using red wiggler worms, children can compost indoors and experience the compost 'magic' - watching that apple core turn into dark crumbly compost. This workshop covers the process of decomposition, as well as how the worms help the process along. Each participant will have the chance to make and bring home their own mini worm-bin allowing them to follow this process through its different stages. For ages 5 and over. Please see our calendar for workshops.

Teacher Worm Composting Workshop

Worm composting is a welcome addition to any science curriculum and can be easily incorporated into the classroom. This workshop will show teachers how to set up and maintain a worm bin in the classroom and prepare them to teach the science of decomposition to their students. Other decomposition and worm-related curriculum ideas will also be discussed. Join us at one of our workshops to purchase a low-cost worm condo, including worms.

Master Composter Training Program

Each fall the NYC Compost Project in Manhattan runs the Master Composter Training Program for folks who really want to learn all the nuts and bolts of composting in the city, and share that knowledge with others. The program runs for six weeks and includes work days and field trips. After the training participants are expected to contribute thirty hours of community service promoting composting in their communities in order to receive the official title of NYC MASTER COMPOSTER. For more information, visit the NYC Master Composter Certificate Course and click here for the online application.