There’s an organic way to dispose of your pumpkins this year. Zero Waste Renfrew Manager and Bachelor of Science student at Laurentian University, Tori Miller, says last year they started a pumpkin and straw pick up after Halloween. She says she noticed a lot of waste in the community and wanted to make a difference. One of the reasons she started this was because the town was investing close to a million dollars in their landfill instead of looking at sustainable options. Miller says all the pumpkins and guts are collected and used as compost material for a giant community garden.
Miller says the self-sustaining, lasagna style garden has many layers and is made up of trees, branches, leaves, organic material (the pumpkins), soil and manure. She says you don’t need to water the garden because it retains the rain water. Miller says they will donate whatever they grow next year to the Renfrew Food Bank. She adds anyone interested in having their pumpkin picked up can follow a link available up on the Zero Waste Renfrew Facebook page. Collection day is November 3rd and last year over 20 pumpkins were collected. Zero Waste Renfrew is looking for student volunteers to help out. Miller says they will also be doing a Christmas tree collection.
Sign up for the pumpkin and straw pick up here.
