For the past seven years, Birdhouse has partnered with NOPE (Natural Organic Process Enterprises) and Sustainable RVA Zero Waste Initiative to provide the Randolph neighborhood with a place to bring kitchen waste and food scraps for composting.
The project has grown from a single bin, emptied weekly, to three compost bins emptied twice a week. In 2022, our composting project diverted 31,450 pounds of food scraps & organic material from landfills.
We receive calls and emails weekly from local residents looking for the compost bins. They can be a little tricky to find, but once you know where to look it’s simple to divert your food scraps from our landfills!
Between the Randolph Community Pool and Randolph tennis courts in Petronius Jones Park, is a brick gazebo. The bins are situated just outside the gazebo, closest to the pool and next to the Birdhouse Community Garden (look for the blue shed, then look for the gazebo. The three bins outside of the gazebo space, closest to the pool and blue shed are what you are looking for!). They are available 24/7 and emptied on Tuesdays and Fridays.
You are welcome to bring your kitchen waste, table scraps, and any compostable containers, but we ask that you not bring your yard waste, as the program is not designed for such material. Commercially compostable containers/bags are accepted in the bins but please do not put your scraps in the bin in any container that is not compostable (feel free to dump just the compostable items directly into the bin!)
Urban Composting Tips:
If you don’t have compostable bags to store scraps in, use a container with a lid (Tupperware, an old bucket, etc.) This will help to combat smell and fruit flies!
Put the container in the freezer if you can’t take the scraps to the bins right away to combat smell