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Pollinators Love Leaves!

10/5/2021

Let's give some love to the crawly caterpillars in the The Kink's song, Autumn Almanac, by leaving our leaves on the ground for them to enjoy this fall.

For many, a leaf-strewn yard is a nuisance, a mess to be cleaned up and hauled away. Leaves are seen as a detriment to the idyllic American lawn. If you’re an organic gardener, you may look at fall leaves in a different light—you might see free, nutrient-rich mulch, and a perfect carbon source to accompany the nitrogenous kitchen scraps in your compost pile. If you’re an entomologist or a pollinator advocate, fall leaves look like something different entirely. Let’s take a look at how leaving the leaves can support pollinators.

If you’ve ever strolled through a deciduous forest in the colder months you’ve probably noticed that, unlike the average lawn, no one rakes up the leaves. Instead, these fallen former solar panels accumulate on the forest floor and persist for many months to come. The leaves not only reintroduce carbon and other nutrients into the soil as they decompose, they also harbor their own little living world. For the smaller critters of the forest, the layer of leaves, also known as duff, can provide shelter from the elements, much-needed microclimates, camouflage, and even a crunchy, carbon-rich snack.

The majority of butterfly and moth species in temperate climates seek refuge among fallen leaves during the winter months, capitalizing on the many benefits previously mentioned. Different species of lepidoptera (butterflies and moths) can be found overwintering in any one of the four distinct life stages these creatures occupy: egg, caterpillar, pupa, or adult. Take the red-banded hairstreak, for example—these delicate beauties lay their eggs on the underside of fallen oak leaves. When the caterpillars emerge they munch on these leaves to their hearts’ content and gear up for a harsh winter made livable thanks to their detritus home.

Lepidopterans are not the only pollinators that appreciate a leafy winter abode. Bumblebee queens burrow into the ground and rely on a layer of duff above them to keep out the elements. Unlike honeybees, these bumblebee queens will be the sole survivors of their colony, and the existence of next year’s colony is entirely dependent on her ability to make it through the winter. Seems an awful shame to rip the royal roof off of a queen’s house only to be tossed in a bag and hauled away.

Spiders, worms, nematodes, snails, and other invertebrates also occupy this under-appreciated microcosm. However, the role of fallen leaves extends even further. Leaf litter provides a crucial food source for birds that need larvae to feed their young. Even herbaceous perennial plants, waiting out the winter underground, benefit from the insulation the leaves provide their root systems. Like any other facet of an ecosystem, when the leaves are taken away, the effects radiate outwards impacting far more than just the critters that call them home.

Considering that pollinators are responsible for one in three bites of food we eat and pollinate nearly 90% of flowering plants, we need to do everything we can to protect them—leaving some leaf litter is an integral part of that process. So next time you feel inclined to get rid of those ‘pesky’ leaves, think about the butterflies, the moths, the bumblebees, and everything they do for us.

This article is written for the residents of the City of Asheville in partnership with the City of Asheville.

Hominy Rising Art Event celebrating 10th anniversary of the Hominy Creek Greenway

9/30/2021

The Friends of Hominy Creek Greenway, Inc. (FOHCG) invites the public to “Hominy Rising - Art & Awareness on the Greenway.” This multi-tiered event will include 18+ visual and performance artists celebrating 10 years of the Hominy Creek Greenway. Installations will be on exhibit the week of Oct. 2 -10 on the Hominy Creek Greenway, 80 Shelburne Road, West Asheville. Opening Party and Performances will take place on Oct. 2, 4 to 7 pm (rain date Oct. 9). Also included in the week of festivities is a Family Day on Oct. 3 at 1 pm and an Art Bark Walk on Oct. 9 at 10 am. This event is free but donations are appreciated (or become a member!) More info at FOHCG.org.

What: "Hominy Rising" celebrating 10 years of the Hominy Creek Greenway
Where: 80 Shelbourne Rd., Hominy Creek Greenway, West Asheville
Opening Event, 10/2 4-7pm. Rain date 10/9, 4-7pm.
Exhibition Dates: October 2 - October 10, 2021
Family Day: Oct. 3 at 1 pm
Art Bark Walk: Oct. 9 at 10 am
Website: http://fohcg.org/join-us/arts-awareness/

Full Schedule and Description Available Here!

The Friends of Hominy Creek Greenway will host 18+ visual and performance artists to celebrate the Hominy Creek Greenway’s 10th anniversary. The exhibition of temporary, outdoor art installations will be displayed from Saturday October 2 to Sunday October 10, 2021. The exhibition will celebrate the Hominy Creek Greenway’s 10th anniversary and reflect on the history, ecology and beauty of the greenway.

This is a juried exhibit, artists chosen include Caro & Chri, Max Cooper, Claire Dima, Growing Wild Forest School, Harmony Village, Kimberly Hodges (poster artist), Jenna Jaffe, Britt McDermott, Jennifer Murphy, Tiffany Narron, Pagans & Androids, Reddenhollow, Jason Rojas, Lisa Smith & Students, Peter Speer, Lex Turnbull, Justin Wells, and Zelda & Vivi et al.

Thank you to our sponsors including: Friends of Hominy Creek Greenway, Mosaic Realty, New Belgium Brewing, Mountain Pet Rescue, Goldfish Marmalade, Cellarest Beer Project, and Growing Wild School.

The community Art Bark Walk is being hosted by Mountain Pet Rescue Asheville on Saturday, October 9th at 10:00 am to strut your leashed pup down the Hominy Creek Greenway to check out the Hominy Rising art installations. Doggie costumes are encouraged, but not required and if you don’t have your own four legged friend, no problem. Mountain Pet Rescue AVL will have adoptable pups looking for their new forever family!

The theme of Hominy Rising is to highlight all aspects of the Hominy Creek Greenway experience including the history of the river and watershed, the ecology, the human impact, local biographies, folktales and legends, the story of the greenway, threats from development, the flora and fauna, its beauty, and in general, the spirit of the greenway. To find out more information for the project, visit http://fohcg.org/join-us/arts-awareness/. Contact FOHCG board president Bryan Tomes with questions.

About the Hominy Creek Greenway
After moving to Asheville from Atlanta in 2006 Doug “Brotherhug” Barlow led the effort to convince public officials to protect a secluded fourteen acre greenspace along Hominy Creek known as the “Waller Tract”.

The price tag of the Waller Tract, however, was far too high for him to handle alone. So Barlow set out to convince public officials of the value of the narrow wedge of land along Hominy Creek. His case for more green space is a familiar one: Urban parkland can improve ecological health, provide a place to play and gather, and help residents connect with nature, making the city more livable.

“It’s a magical place,”said Barlow. “The first time I saw the land I immediately felt that it needed to be public space.” Brotherhug Barlow

Thanks to his efforts, in 2011 a coalition of public and private interests bought the Waller Tract on behalf of the City of Asheville for $139,000 in order to establish the Hominy Creek Greenway. The tract includes a portion of the world’s first hydroelectric powered trolley developed by lumber baron Edwin Carrier in 1892.

Hominy Creek Dam, 1915 From the get-go, Barlow envisioned a community park planned by the community. For him, spearheading neighborhood movements is nothing new: In the 1980s, Barlow helped transform two acres of derelict urban Atlanta into a beloved community park and land trust.

This time, he helped launch the Friends of Hominy Creek Greenway, Inc. (FOHCG) in 2011, a group of volunteers dedicated to creating and managing the parkland that borders a mile-long section of Hominy Creek in West Asheville. The FOHCG is partnering with local government, Asheville GreenWorks and other organizations to improve and manage the property.

In addition to being a corridor for commuters, the Hominy Creek Greenway is an unusual piece of forest in the city, Barlow said. He hopes educators and artists will find inspiration from the Greenway’s history, beauty, and ecology.

For more information about the project or the Hominy Creek Greenway contact FOHCG president Bryan Tomes. The FOHCG is a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving the Hominy Creek Greenway’s wild nature and history, and connecting West Asheville to the French Broad River and downtown Asheville.

The FOHCG is a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving the Hominy Creek Greenway’s wild nature and history, and connecting West Asheville to the French Broad River and downtown Asheville.

An Autumn Song: Love your Leaves

9/27/2021

Autumn Song

In the deep fall
don’t you imagine the leaves think how
comfortable it will be to touch
the earth instead of the
nothingness of air and the endless
freshets of wind? And don’t you think
the trees themselves, especially those with mossy,
warm caves, begin to think

of the birds that will come — six, a dozen — to sleep
inside their bodies? And don’t you hear
the goldenrod whispering goodbye,
the everlasting being crowned with the first
tuffets of snow? The pond
vanishes, and the white field over which
the fox runs so quickly brings out
its blue shadows. And the wind pumps its
bellows. And at evening especially,
the piled firewood shifts a little,
longing to be on its way.

~ Mary Oliver

Let the leaves touch the earth this year by choosing to leave them on your lawns and yards. Fall is the perfect time to start composting. Read below to find out why!

In fall, leaves from deciduous trees coat the ground. This layer of organic matter represents an opportunity to build your garden’s soil, protect your lawn during the colder months, and create habitat for pollinators. In order to take full advantage of the leaves in your yard, try leaf composting.

The Benefits of Leaf Compost

As leaves decompose, they form a beneficial soil amendment which can increase the health of your garden or lawn in a number of ways.

Leaf compost increases soil porosity, which means more room for water and air to flow around plants’ roots.
Compost also raises the soil’s fertility by adding nutrients like carbon and nitrogen.
The dark, rich, organic matter left by the decomposition of leaves retains moisture, loosens compacted earth, and increases the particle size of your garden soil.
Leaf compost can be used as a mulch or top dressing to repel weeds from your garden.

Composting leaves isn’t just good for your garden; this single act benefits the whole Asheville community.

When residents of the City of Asheville bag their leaves and place them on the roadside, the city expends resources collecting and processing these leaves. This means taxpayer money must be allocated to removing a beneficial resource, which could enhance many backyards instead of ending up at an industrial composting site. The collection, transportation, and processing of leaf compost uses fossil fuels, contributing to greenhouse gas emissions.

Leaves bagged up and placed by the road may end up tipping into storm drains, where they slow or stop the flow of water. By clogging neighborhood storm drains, these leaves can lead to roadside flooding. When the leaves do pass through the drains, they enter nearby streams. Huge amounts of leaves pour into the waterway from neighborhood storm drains. This leads to eutrophication: an overload of nutrients in the water that causes oxygen depletion and, in extreme cases, large-scale fish kills or algae blooms.

Remember: If you must bag your leaves for curbside pickup, use paper bags! Using paper bags smooths out the whole composting process because paper bags are compostable, just like leaves.

How to Compost Leaves

Simple leaf composting takes less work than creating a traditional compost.

In traditional compost, you fill a bin with 3 parts brown material to 1 part green material. Brown material is primarily Carbon; it’s the building block of life on earth. The green material (ex. kitchen scraps and yard trimmings) contributes Nitrogen to the compost mix. Nitrogen-rich “greens” have a habit of getting stinky and attracting pests when not properly mixed with Carbon-rich “browns.” If you already have a compost pile going, fallen leaves are a valuable “brown” material used to balance the ratio of Carbon to Nitrogen. Composting isn’t hard, but leaf composting is even easier.

Just add leaves.

Pile your leaves in a corner of the yard for an easy, out-of-the-way option. Thanks to natural decomposing microbes, you can rake your leaves into a pile and forget about them. Once the winter is over, the once large pile will be a small mound of nutrient-rich humus.
Construct a bin using wire mesh or wood for more control. If you like a tidier look, try a bin. It’s best to stir the leaves once a month or so in order to promote aeration, which helps microbes to decompose the material. A basic compost bin is 3 square feet, large enough to hold moisture and heat, but not so large as to be unmanageable.
Leave the leaves where they fall. This third option offers pollinators a safe place to overwinter and can help protect your lawn from extreme cold. You can also use a mower to chop up leaves. These leaf bits are more easily decomposed and will let more sunlight through to your lawn. Keep in mind, leaf bits won’t protect pollinators nearly as well as whole leaves.

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Leaf composting couldn’t be simpler, but the benefits are great. You’ll save streams eutrophication, give pollinators habitat, build healthy soil in your own garden, and avoid burning unnecessary fossil fuels. Asheville GreenWorks provides easy-to-assemble compost bins to house your leaves this fall. Reach out to us on Facebook, Instagram, or through our website to learn more about composting in your backyard!

Happy Fall!

This article is written for the residents of the City of Asheville in partnership with the City of Asheville.

Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion in the Sustainability Sector

4/1/2021

This is a story of how one clean energy business and one conservation nonprofit have come together through their less obvious interest in working for a more just, equitable, diverse, and inclusive (JEDI) community at large.

DIVERSITY AT SUGAR HOLLOW AND IN THE ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENT
Sugar Hollow was born and raised in Fairview, NC by two cousins on the same family farm that five generations have been working. They were raised to care for and preserve the land and do their part to help solve the issue of climate change, but on a deeper level, their core passion and belief system centered around trying to help heal the world. The police actions that led to the death of George Floyd and too many others have highlighted for Sugar Hollow the importance of focusing on the issue of institutional racism in our culture and ways we can combat it both internally in our company and externally in how we interact with the community.

Like so many industries, the most progressive in the clean energy industry have recently started assessing and putting plans in place to increase diversity and inclusion and address systemic racism. The solar industry is disproportionately male- and white-dominated, as is the environmental movement in general as this article outlines, and we’re sad to say that Sugar Hollow follows this trend as well. But we're hoping to change that and have laid out a path to start making changes right here at home by:

Learning as a staff about what it means to support a more diverse workforce (including but not limited to race, class, gender, sexual preference, age & ability),
Learning to be anti-racist and anti-oppressive, and to recognize personal privilege, and
Bringing conversations of environmental justice to the forefront.

WHAT IS A JUST TRANSITION?
It’s incredibly important that all people, especially marginalized communities, benefit from the clean energy economy (this is the Just Transition philosophy) and Sugar Hollow wants to find partners in western NC to bring this philosophy to the local clean energy revolution. The Sierra Club describes a Just Transition as ‘moving our economy off of fossil fuels, and towards clean energy while providing just pathways for workers to transition to high-quality work with integrity.’ This set of principles, practices, and processes specifically aims to involve communities that have been left out of other economies and/or harmed by fossil fuels.

SO WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE?
At Sugar Hollow, management and staff have formed an Inclusivity team to create a JEDI plan including the hiring of a consultant (with a focus on paying people of color for this work) to help us understand our unconscious biases and make changes thoughtfully and without causing additional harm. We’re also working with an Asheville program, Inclusive Hiring Partners, to be connected with a more diverse workforce and continue our education as a company.

We’ve long supported Asheville GreenWorks and their community initiatives and were enthusiastic to hear that they too are working to bring JEDI into their organization and programming. For us, this alignment has made us want to be in an even closer partnership with these good folks as we continue to learn (and unlearn) together.

We are a proud sponsor of GreenWorks’ Urban Forestry initiative, which aims to address the inequities experienced by under-resourced communities and communities of color -- fewer trees are planted and preserved in these communities, which make those living there much more susceptible to the negative impacts of climate change and the urban heat island effect.

We’re donating $100 to Asheville GreenWorks for every referral we receive who goes solar. Feel free to recommend solar to friends and family and help us send money their way. (There’s a referral bonus for the person who refers as well which could be sent to Asheville GreenWorks too!) For more info, visit https://www.sugarhollowsolar.com/introduce-a-friend.

Clary Franko
Marketing Manager
Sugar Hollow Solar

Recycling FAQs

2/10/2021

Written by GreenWorks staff with help from Curbside Management

Asheville GreenWorks mission is to inspire, equip, and mobilize individuals and communities to take care of the places we love to live. That includes recycling education! Though our organization is not a recycling facility, we do host our Hard 2 Recycle collection events 4 times per year in Buncombe County and twice in Henderson County. And we strive to educate the general public about recycling in our area.

We receive A LOT of questions about recycling - what can be recycled?, what can't be recycled and why?, where can it be recycled? We want you to know everything that we know, so here are the top items that GreenWorks receives questions about. We know that recycling can be hard to keep up with. Reach out to us if you have other questions at [email protected] or 828-254-1776. Thanks for doing your part to recycle right!

BONUS Tips

Repair, repurpose, or regift before you recycle! Check out community Facebook pages like WAX, Buy Nothing Asheville, and the marketplace, or your own social media and other networks to see if your items can benefit someone else in the community.
Utilize the City of Asheville's Waste Wizard to search for solutions to items that can't be recycled in your curbside bin.
Recycle items throughout the year, especially large items - this helps make life easier for us at Hard 2 Recycle events.
Precycle - due diligence goes a long way when considering how you can replace needed items. Research companies who offer no or low-waste shipping, purchase items that can be easily reused or recycled when you're done. And consider buying an item second-hand instead of new.
Those blue bags aren't recyclable! - As misleading as it is, those blue "recycling" bags are not recyclable! They go to the landfill just like all other plastic bags that you may put in your bin. Collect loose items in your curbside bin, or use paper bags if you need to transport them.
When in doubt, throw it out - We hate throwing things away, too. But the reality is that recycling is not the solution to waste in our country and there is already a huge burden on recycling facilities. If you've made your way through this entire post, utilized the above resources, and still don't know what to do - that item may need to go to the landfill. DON'T fall victim to "wishful recycling" - a practice of putting everything in your recycling bin in hopes that someone will recycle it. You'll likely end up contaminating entire batches of recycling (which means those batches go to the landfill), and will put a strain on the workers and companies who have to sort through your recycling and pull those items from the line.

WHERE TO RECYCLE...

* Please note that "landfill" does not refer to throwing these items away but refers to recycling programs at the Buncombe County Landfill

Old electronics - including cords, appliances, and computer accessories

Biltmore Iron and Metal Company: These folks are our partner for Hard 2 Recycle so rest assured knowing that some very good people are taking care of properly disposing your items! (They take a lot of other things too, see their website for more information)
Landfill: fees may apply
Best Buy
Hard 2 Recycle

Styrofoam

Publix: food grade only: egg cartons, takeout clamshells, meat trays, cups
H2R events: CLEAN food grade (see above) and packaging; No peanuts, no foam, no insulation. If it snaps when you bend it, we can take it at these events. Please note that we can only accept WHITE PACKING STYROFOAM but can accept any color food grade. Help us out by bagging your styrofoam in clear bags so that our partner can easily see what they're getting - this saves GreenWorks money on purchasing large bags and reduces waste from non-clear bags.
Peanuts: Quality Pack and Ship

TV/Computer monitors

TVs
1. Landfill on TV recycling days: $10 fee
2. H2R events: $10 fee
3. Best Buy: $25 fee
Computer monitors
1. Landfill: $10 fee
2. Best Buy: $25 fee
3. H2R: $10 fee for monitors 17+ inches

Plastics

When recycling plastics, focus on SHAPE and SIZE, not the # or symbol - What do we mean?.... Read more here!
Rigid plastics are products that do not give easily when squeezed. Many are large, bulky items like lawn chairs, buckets, toddler toys, broken plastic shovels and sleds, etc. These cannot be recycled in your blue bin or elsewhere in our area. Please try donating or repurposing.
Microwave containers - everyone mentions or shows black specifically Does that mean any other color can go in recycling?
- Microwaveable plastic (clear, black, or otherwise) is not recyclable in Asheville. It’s #5 polypropylene and is resistant to chemical breakdown, so it requires high heat for melting and reprocessing, and therefore is not accepted by any local recyclers
Single serving containers
1. No clamshells are recyclable with Curbie
2. No sachets like single-serving ketchup packets
3. Nothing with the film or foil attached (because these are monstrous hybrids and require too much to take apart)
Terracycle has brand-specific programs for some single-serving items
The Plastic Film Recycling Program: Remember - No wraps/films/bags are recyclable in the blue bin. Recycle ONLY at participating grocery stores.
PVC pipe - Not recyclable

Juice boxes
Gable top containers are named for the fold at the top of the container that resembles the gable roof of a house (think OJ or half and half containers). Aseptic cartons made from multi-layer packaging that combines layers of paper, plastic, and metal to make food containers, especially for liquids such as orange juice and soups (think juice boxes and broth containers with flat tops).

Curbie accepts both types of “tetrapack” boxes for curbside pickup
Juice boxes and pouches
1. Yes to kids juice boxes (but not the straws)
2. No to drink pouches (like Capri Sun)

Shredded Paper

Asheville Waste Paper Company
Landfill
H2R
Can be compostable, but only if not plastic-coated or heavily dyed/bleached

Batteries

H2R: any kind
Lowe's Home Improvement: rechargeable only
Landfill: any kind
BIMCO: lead-based
Batteries Plus Bulbs: any kind

Light Bulbs (if intact)

CFL bulbs
1. Lowe's Home Improvement
2. Home Depot
3. Landfill on Household Hazardous Waste Days
4. Batteries Plus Bulbs
CFL tubes
1. Landfill on Household Hazardous Waste Days
2. Batteries Plus Bulbs
All others
1. Batteries Plus Bulbs
2. Landfill disposal

Old books

Donate if they are in good condition
Recycle at H2R

Paint and paint cans

Paint cans are not recyclable in the blue bin even if empty
Paint should be recycled at the Landfill on Household Hazardous Waste days
If the can is completely empty and dry, it can be recycled with scrap metal at the landfill, BIMCO, or H2R

33rd Annual (Virtual) WNC Big Sweep

9/1/2020

WNC Big Sweep is going virtual! Asheville GreenWorks will be sharing a mix of educational videos and activities, action steps and petitions, and hands-on service opportunities to highlight the 33rd WNC Big Sweep. Connecting with our streams and rivers is vital during these difficult times. Join us on social media from September 14th-20th to learn about our waterways, create positive environmental change, and help clean up our community by participating in a self-guided river or roadside cleanup any day that week.

Post your cleanup photos using the hashtag #WNCBigSweep2020 for a chance to win some awesome prizes!

How to Do a Cleanup

Has it been a while since you've participated in a roadside, river, or creek cleanup?
Never fear! Watch the following video for a quick refresher on the basics.

Do you have your own boat and want to get out on the water with your family or friends? We've put together a River Cleanup Guide with safety reminders, river public access points, and things to keep in mind to have a safe and enjoyable river cleanup.

River Cleanup Guide

How to get cleanup supplies

If you have a group of 3 people or less, we suggest picking up supplies from one of our 6 Cleanup Supply Stations. These stations are stocked with gloves, safety vests, and trash bags.

1) AGW Office @ 2 Sulphur Spring Road
2) AGW Office @ 318 Riverside Drive
3) The HOP @ 640 Merrimon Ave #103
4) Sutton / Dezio Law @ 70 Pisgah Hwy (on their back porch)
5) Buncombe County Sports [email protected] 24 Apac Circle (near the GreenWorks nursery entrance)
6) Sun Soo Martial Arts @ 800 Fairview Road
7) Mast General Store @ 15 Biltmore Avenue (out front)

If you have a group of 4 or more or would like any special cleanup supplies, please contact [email protected] to arrange a pickup from our Riverside Office.

15 Minute Reader - COVID-19 and Sanitation Workers: What We’re Doing to Help

6/9/2020

By Finn Digman, Waste Reduction Education Coordinator for Asheville Greenworks

If you haven’t seen our 5-minute reader, COVID-19 and Sanitation Workers: What You Can Do To Help, use this link to the short post, where you can read a quick summary of actions you can take to protect our community’s sanitation employees. This post will discuss ways local sanitation agencies and Asheville GreenWorks are working together to safeguard our sanitation workers.

While the COVID-19 pandemic affects everyone, essential workers bear a greater burden than most. They touch more surfaces, interact with more people, and generally leave their homes more than the rest of us. So, to say thanks for their hard work, we need to do our part in keeping them safe.

According to WasteDive, (a website devoted to sanitation-related topics) no cities besides New York have seen major outbreaks of COVID-19 in their sanitation workforce. To avoid a fate similar to New York City’s, we must take action.

Here’s how:

TRASH:

Trash is the waste you bag up and put into your green City bin. The City of Asheville has their own sanitation department and collects trash using City trucks. Below is a list of what they’re doing to ensure their employees’ safety during the time of COVID-19.

Modifying collection operations and equipment to limit the number of people per truck. Some operations require 3 people per truck. Operations are now limited to 2 people per truck (while wearing masks) with a follower truck, and some protective dividers have been installed in trucks to create an additional barrier between staff to prevent potential spread of COVID-19.
Distributing masks and gloves: collection and processing workers are provided with the proper PPE to protect them from a variety of potential contaminants, including COVID-19.

Here’s what you can do to help your local City employees safe:

Bag your trash and tie it closed. Loose garbage is less likely to make it where it needs to be: the landfill.
Place your bins on the curb or in designated areas. Make sure there is sufficient space between bins; this allows the automated truck to do all the work without workers needing to leave the vehicle and manually readjust your bins.
Sanitize your bins’ lids and handles before pick up. If workers do need to exit the vehicle and empty your bins, this creates an extra layer of protection against the virus. Frequent sanitation is a good habit to get into, generally. Disinfecting commonly touched surfaces is one of the CDC’s recommended ways for stopping the spread of any bacteria or virus, including the COVID-19 virus.
Never put sharp objects directly in your bins. Needles, razors, knives, and broken glass all pose a risk to worker safety as your trash makes its way to the landfill. If you need to dispose of sharps, bring them to your local transfer station. Here’s a link to Buncombe County’s transfer station website where you can learn more about the services they provide.

Here’s what Asheville GreenWorks is doing to help keep City employees safe:

Working with the City of Asheville to disseminate important messages about services they provide.
Posting educational material on our website and social media so you can determine how to dispose of your waste, whatever it’s made of!
Promoting Mind Your Plastic May, where you can learn waste reduction techniques to minimize the amount of trash you create.

RECYCLING:

The City of Asheville contracts with Curbie to collect our recycling. Curbie is continuing as normal with a heightened awareness. Here’s what they say about how their employees are staying safe during the time of COVID-19.

Wearing gloves and masks and sanitizing their hands often to minimize risk.
Assuming all surfaces are contaminated with COVID-19. This includes waste, cart handles, truck bodies, and door handles.

Here’s what you can do to help your local Curbie employees stay safe:

Be considerate: do not place anything in the bin that you assume could be contaminated with COVID-19.
Do not bag your recycling. Curbie employees must open these bags to sort your recycling. Plus, plastic bags contaminate the recycling stream and get caught in machinery.
Never recycle medical waste of any kind. Gloves, masks, needles, and the like are never recyclable and medical waste poses a risk to Curbie employees.
Recycle right! Follow this link for a complete list of Curbie’s accepted recyclables.
When in doubt, throw it out. Wishful recyclers tend to contaminate the recycling stream with things like aluminum foil and plastic clamshells. Recycling things you wish were recyclable slows down the process and costs Curbie unnecessary expenses.
Treat your blue City recycling bins the same as your green City trash bins; keep them in designated pick up areas only on your day, and sanitize them frequently.

Here’s how Asheville Greenworks is helping Curbie employees:

Sharing Recycle Right information on our website and social media. Click this link to visit Asheville GreenWorks’ recycling information hub.
Posting blogs and DIY videos to help you learn the power of refusing, reducing, and reusing before you ever think about recycling. Follow along with our Mind Your Plastic May campaign here and learn all about going plastic free.
Creating virtual recycling presentations and workshops to help you learn the do’s and don'ts of recycling in our area.

COMPOSTING:

One compost collection service in Asheville, CompostNow, picks up kitchen waste, which is different from yard waste. These are the steps CompostNow is taking to ensure their employees’ health during the spread of COVID-19.

Thoroughly cleaning compost bins and lids (this is a standard operating procedure, and one which CompostNow will continue in the future).
Stocking all offices, vehicles, and warehouses with hand sanitizer and gloves. They’re also taking measures like propping open facility doors to minimize contact throughout the day.
Requiring employees to clean hands before and after entry into all CompostNow facilities.
Providing appropriate PPE. Drivers who service community bins get gloves and face coverings, employees washing your compost bins receive full face-shields, and any team members who interact with other people throughout the day are provided with face masks. Employees are required to wear and frequently sanitize their PPE.
Sanitizing all vehicle surfaces after completing each day’s routes and sanitizing frequently touched surfaces throughout the day.
Following guidelines from the Center for Disease Control (CDC), World Health Organization (WHO), federal government, and other global health organizations to ensure their actions align with the latest COVID-19 information.
Requiring all team members to document temperature and confirm they are symptom-free before beginning work.
Limiting vehicle and facility occupancy to ensure social distancing procedures are followed. CompostNow is limiting interactions by splitting their teams into distinct, non-overlapping shifts. This action greatly decreases the probability of cross-contamination between teams.

Here’s what you can do to help your CompostNow employees safe:

Disinfect your compost bins and lids before you set them out for collection. The CDC recommends you sanitize frequently touched surfaces as much as possible, and your compost bin is no exception.
Skip your compost collection service if you are experiencing symptoms related to COVID-19. You can pause your service with CompostNow for 2 or more weeks and then resume it easily. Just follow this link.
Secure all compost inside your bins with the lid completely closed. CompostNow will not collect compost set beside the bins. Collection drivers are careful to touch only the handle of your compost bins; please make this step easy and safe for them. You can request additional bins from CompostNow here.
For renters: try to work with your landlord or property manager to minimize the surfaces collection drivers must touch to access your bins.
Practice social distancing; stay at least 6 feet away from CompostNow employees as they service your bins. Many of us are experiencing the effects of isolation. Remember: you can wave to workers from your window. Social distancing only means physical distancing.

Asheville GreenWorks is doing our part by:

Publishing videos like our backyard composting workshop; these will help you be self-sufficient and build your household’s resiliency. Click this link to see our website’s current composting information.
Continuing to provide you with detailed, up-to-date information on the state of waste management in the Asheville area.

Help your community the most by practicing the 3 Rs: Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle.

By reducing the amount of packaging and products you take in, you expose yourself and essential workers to fewer daily interactions. Reusing your products keeps them in your home and away from sanitation workers. The age-old adage, “waste not, want not,” applies now more than ever. Follow Asheville GreenWorks to learn repurposing and upcycling techniques that will turn your trash into treasure.

Finally, recycle right. This means recycling only “grocery-store” plastic containers, glass, and aluminum; check out Curbie’s website for a complete list of accepted recyclables. Remember: when in doubt, throw it out!

Our city’s sanitation staff are working full-time to keep Asheville clean and safe. Please do your part to protect essential workers by following guidelines, washing your hands frequently, and following the advice of the CDC.

From all of us at Asheville Greenworks, stay safe out there. We’ll see you online!

This article is written for the residents of the City of Asheville in partnership with the City of Asheville.

5 Minute Reader COVID-19 and Sanitation Workers: What You Can do to Help

6/3/2020

By Finn Digman, Waste Reduction Education Coordinator for Asheville Greenworks

For the evolving situation around COVID-19, trash, recycling, and compost collection remain vital to the ongoing health of our area. Can you imagine what our homes would look like without these services? Do you want to?

Us neither.

So, let’s take a moment to consider the health implications of working in sanitation during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Thankfully, the City of Asheville’s trash and recycling services are occurring as scheduled. The City is taking measures to ensure their workers’ safety. You can read more about these measures in Asheville Greenworks’ post about brush collection and in our upcoming 15-minute Reader: COVID-19 and Sanitation Workers: What We’re Doing to Help.

Continuing these vital services means employees for the City, CompostNow, and Curbie are more at risk when coming into contact with our waste. In the time of COVID-19, the potential for contact holds some obvious health implications, and we want to help keep workers safe.

Are you with us?

Here’s what you can do to help.

Wash your hands frequently and properly. During the COVID-19 pandemic, keeping your hands clean is especially important to help prevent the virus from spreading. You should always wash your hands after handling waste or touching waste receptacles. For more information on proper handwashing, follow this link.

Wipe down cart lids and handles with disinfectant. Most carts are collected with a touchless, automated truck. However, at times, waste collectors must touch carts to properly get the waste into trucks. Wiping down your lids and handles reduces the potential risk of exposure for everyone.

All trash must be bagged and bags must be tied. Your green City carts contain trash destined for the landfill. By bagging your trash, you reduce the potential exposure for trash collectors and workers at the landfill. Tightly bagged trash also minimizes loose litter, so it won’t go flying through your neighborhood.

Sign up for AVL Collects. Follow this link to sign up for weekly collection reminders and information about service delays or cancellation notices.

Do not bag your recycling. Processors at Curbie are required to manually open recycling in bags in order to sort it. Eliminate this risk factor by filling your blue City carts with loose recyclables.

Recycle right. Minimize contact for recycling processors by ensuring you are disposing of acceptable recyclables. Generally, glass and plastic jugs, tubs, bottles, and jars are welcome. Follow this link for a comprehensive list of everything Curbie accepts. And remember: When in doubt, throw it out.

Never recycle medical waste. Medical masks, gloves, and needles are not recyclable and pose a serious risk to workers who are not trained to handle them. For more information on medical disposal follow this link to Buncombe County’s Harm Reduction page.

Wipe down your compost bins before setting them out. CompostNow is working hard to ensure the safety of its employees. Help them by disinfecting surfaces workers must touch.

Put all your compost in the bin and secure the lid. CompostNow cannot accept extra compostables left beside their bins. You can request additional bins here.

Skip service if you are experiencing symptoms. By skipping service for at least two weeks after you begin experiencing symptoms, you can reduce the risk of exposure to CompostNow employees.

Brush can be composted in your yard. For more information about managing your yard waste, go to this Asheville Greenworks’ post.

We are grateful for our dedicated sanitation workers and the services they offer. In this time of social isolation, social responsibility means protecting the essential employees that keep our society functioning. You can do your part by following the instructions above, as well as adhering to the CDC’s recommendations.

Be safe out there, and stay tuned for more great content from Asheville Greenworks.

This article is written for the residents of the City of Asheville in partnership with the City of Asheville.

#AVLQuaranClean

4/30/2020

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Our cleanup events may have been canceled, but there’s still trash out to collect!

AGW Cleanup Stations have been filled and supplies are ready for pick up if you find yourself wanting to get out of the house & motivated to improve our community. To avoid risk of spreading illness, please do not host group cleanups. We encourage you to follow social distancing and safety guidelines set by the CDC, North Carolina DHHS, and Buncombe County Government. Each station has been filled with supply packs— in one roll you will find: 2 trash bags, 1 safety vest and 1 pair of gloves. Additional glove/vest combos and extra bags are also available at these cleanup stations:

1) AGW Office @ 2 Sulphur Spring Road
2) AGW Office @ 318 Riverside Drive
3) The HOP @ 640 Merrimon Ave #103
4) Sutton / Dezio Law @ 70 Pisgah Hwy (on their back porch)
5) Buncombe County Sports [email protected] 24 Apac Circle (near the GreenWorks nursery entrance)
6) Sun Soo Martial Arts @ 800 Fairview Road
7) Mast General Store @ 15 Biltmore Avenue (out front)

Cleanup Protocol can be found in the associated supporting document and also in the cleanup stations themselves. Please check out gear using the folder provided, and report trash to [email protected]

Make sure to post videos and pictures and tag #AVLQuaranClean so we can all see the incredible job you’re doing. And, as always, please stay safe and healthy. We appreciate all of you!

Not sure where to start? Check out our "Roads by Priority" map for information on which roads could use a clean up!

View the Map

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Greenworks Seeking Applicants for AmeriCorps Project Conserve 2020-21

4/29/2020

Laura Anderson - Water Quality Coordinator

Asheville GreenWorks is seeking applicants to fill two AmeriCorps Project Conserve positions to restore and protect Asheville's fragile ecosystems. We have two positions available: Community Forestry Coordinator and Water Quality Coordinator. Service terms would begin Sept 1st 2020 and finish up July 31st 2021.

The deadline to apply is May 15th 2020 - applications are now closed

What is Project Conserve?
Administered by Conserving Carolina, Project Conserve is a National Service program in which members come from across the nation to dedicate themselves to serving critical environmental and community needs in western North Carolina. Members are selected based on skill, education, experience, passion and commitment to service. The program focuses on collaboration with nonprofit organizations, community groups and local governments to provide service throughout the region.

Project Conserve individually places members in service with one of our host site organizations working to protect the unique natural resources of the southern Blue Ridge Mountain region. During their terms of service, members will promote conservation through education, volunteerism, and direct environmental service. Members participate in 1 to 3 required training and service days per month with the full Project Conserve team. Training may cover a broad range of topics including wilderness first aid, CPR/AED, conflict resolution, forest management, trail construction, invasive plant identification, environmental education, volunteer management, and disaster preparedness.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE SERVICE DESCRIPTIONS

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