The Intervale Compost Products accepts commercial and institutional food residuals and yard waste (e.g. leaves, grass clippings, and plant materials up to 1/2" in diameter). Please click here for a complete list of acceptable and non-accepable items.

Many restaurants, hotels, hospitals, grocery stores, schools, and other businesses and institutions deliver their food waste to the Intervale Compost or contract with a food waste hauler. This food waste is then mixed with yard waste, manure, and ice cream residue to produce a nutrient rich soil ammendment. The compost is used to restore the soil in the Intervale, Burlington's last remaining farmland. Additional compost is available for sale to landscapers, nurseries, and home gardeners.

To learn more about the Intervale Compost, please visit their website or read below.

CSWD Now Owns and Manages Intervale Compost

After months of negotiations among a dizzying array of local, state, and federal agencies, the fate of Intervale Compost Products (ICP) finally rests on solid ground. As of Monday, October 13, management of ICP will transfer from the Intervale Center to the Chittenden Solid Waste District. The same faces will be on site to greet customers and the same great compost products will be available for purchase.

"We're glad to be able to continue providing businesses and residents in Chittenden County with a place to bring food and yard waste where it can be made into a valuable commodity," says Tom Moreau, General Manager of CSWD. "Our mission is to provide environmentally sound methods of managing solid waste and we have finally reached an agreement that allows us to achieve that for this stream of materials."

The agreement, struck among the Attorney General, the Agency of Natural Resources, the Department of Historic Preservation, the Intervale Center, and CSWD, allows CSWD to accept food scraps and yard debris at ICP until July 1, 2010. Issues raised by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) have been resolved to their satisfaction, allowing composting operations to continue to be conducted safely in what they regard as a flood zone.

"In the public eye, there will be no discernible change at Intervale Compost Products," says Moreau. "Behind the scenes, CSWD will bring its considerable resources to the task, with some of the best facilities managers overseeing daily and long-term operations, ensuring that we won't run into the permitting violations that brought ICP to the brink of permanent closure."

Click on links below for more information about Intervale Compost Products
ICP Operating Agreement
ICP settlement with the Vermont Attorney General
Letter of approval from the City of Burlington
Federal Emergency Management Agency letter of consent
Product Analysis of Intervale Compost Products
Information on PAHs