DEEP denies Cornwall’s composting grant

CORNWALL — Communal composting plans have hit a snag in Cornwall.

“We got a letter from the [Department of Energy and Environmental Protection] saying their compost grant was oversubscribed and due to the tough competition, they could not award us a grant for our efforts to establish a composting program here in town,” said First Selectman Gordon Ridgway.

The denial is the most recent setback in a multi-year effort to start composting at the Transfer Station.

The selectmen discussed next steps at a meeting of the Board on March 18.

“We’re not coming up with a quick solution at the Transfer Station,” said Ridgway. “This makes the need for people to compost at home that much more real.”

Selectman Jennifer Markow revisited the idea of a bucket program in which the town would purchase specialized bins to be distributed for home composting.

Ridgway said there is money in the Transfer Station budget that could be used for such a program, but he wanted to get feedback from the Conservation Commission.

“They were talking about doing a survey,” said Ridgway.

Discussion will resume at the selectmen’s next meeting Tuesday, April 1, at 7:30 p.m.