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I TAKE A FIVE MINUTE DRIVE TO FIRE STATION 11, PUT IN THE LITTLE CODE, AND THEN GET ON WITH MY DAY.SO IT'S, IT'S PRETTY EASY AND ANYBODY CAN DO IT WITH A SIMPLE CHANGE TO HIS FOOD PREP ROUTINE.
PLANO VOLUNTEER AJ ANGUS IS MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN PLANO.
IT'S JUST PUT YOUR FOOD SCRAPS IN A BUCKET THAT OR ORDINARILY WOULD GO INTO THE TRASH.
AJ IS PART OF PLANOS RESIDENTIAL FOOD SCRAP COMPOSTING PROGRAM.
IT TURNS PART OF YOUR TRASH INTO ENVIRONMENTAL TREASURE BY KEEPING FOOD OUT OF THE LANDFILL AND TRANSFORMING IT INTO NATURE FRIENDLY COMPOST OVER TIME.
FOOD AT A LANDFILL, IT BREAKS DOWN AND AS IT DECOMPOSES, IT EMITS, UH, GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS AND THOSE EMISSIONS CAN CONTRIBUTE TO POOR AIR QUALITY.
KATIE WALKER IS THE SENIOR COORDINATOR WITH ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION AND COMMUNITY OUTREACH.
SHE SAYS THAT SINCE PLANOS PROGRAM BEGAN IN 2023, PLANO RESIDENTS HAVE DIVERTED MORE THAN 240,000 POUNDS OF FOOD FROM THE LANDFILL.
SO IF WE CAN HAVE A BETTER WAY TO USE THOSE FOOD SCRAPS AND MAKE THEM INTO SOMETHING VALUABLE LIKE COMPOST, IT'S A WIN-WIN SOLUTION.
ANYONE IN PLANO CAN JOIN A ONE-TIME MEMBERSHIP FEE COVERS THE COST OF THE FOOD SCRAP BUCKET, WELCOME KIT AND UPKEEP OF THE PROGRAM, TRYING TO GET OTHER PEOPLE, UH, INVOLVED WITH THE PROGRAM BECAUSE AGAIN, IT'S, IT'S PRETTY EASY.
GET THINGS OUT OF THE LANDFILL.
YOU KNOW, IT CHECKS A LOT OF BOXES FOR ME.
WHILE THERE'S MORE THAN 800 PARTICIPANTS ALREADY DOING THEIR SHARE, THERE'S EVEN AN ONLINE DASHBOARD WHERE YOU COULD TRACK THE PROGRESS OF YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD, SEE HOW MANY FOOD SCRAPS ARE, UH, COLLECTED AT YOUR DROPOFF SITE, AND HOPEFULLY SPREAD THE WORD TO OTHERS.
DO YOUR PART, MAKE PLANO A LITTLE GREENER.
THERE ARE EIGHT DROPOFF LOCATIONS THROUGHOUT PLANO.
TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE PROGRAM AND TO GET STARTED YOURSELF, HEAD TO PLANO.GOV AND ENTER THE WORD FOOD SCRAP IN THE SEARCH BAR.