Austin Mandates Commercial Composting for Multifamily Properties

Starting October 1, 2024, the City of Austin will require commercial composting collection at all multifamily properties. The city council approved the Universal Recycling Ordinance (URO) amendment on Thursday, September 21, 2023. The URO supports Austin’s zero waste goal as it mandates that commercial business owners and multifamily properties access recycling and that food-permitted businesses ensure that all employees keep organic materials out of landfills. Violations of this yearly responsibility will result in a Class C misdemeanor, punishable by fines up to $2,000 per day, per offense.

All multifamily properties with five or more units, such as apartments, condominiums, dorms, assisted living facilities, and nursing homes, must provide their residents and employees with access to commercial composting services. These properties must accept food scraps, food-soiled paper products, and other BMI-certified composting products.

Community Concierge Services – Austin proudly announces its valet composting services to help facilities meet multi-family composting regulations as of October 1, 2024. This new service promotes environmental responsibility by offering a convenient and seamless way to compost organic waste, reducing landfill waste.

To meet the updated URO requirements for composting, all multifamily properties must offer composting capacity equal to one gallon per unit, calculate capacity needs with the multifamily composting calculator, and provide enough capacity and locations for residents to avoid overflow. The properties must also ensure composting is collected weekly and taken to a composting facility; work with a chosen composting hauler to determine appropriate sizes and amounts of bins for the property. Additionally, all multifamily properties must educate their residents on what can be composted to reduce the risk of contamination and promote eco-friendly practices.

If multifamily properties provide landfill trash and recycling containers in common areas such as community lounges, cafeterias, and gyms, composting containers must be placed in the same spaces. They must be labeled with the type of waste stream and accepted materials in at least two languages, including English and Spanish.

Community Concierge Services – Austin will provide doorstep services to ensure residents comply with the newly required program, diverting food waste, nourishing the soil, creating local jobs, and building healthier food systems for future generations. The valet composting services offer one, two, or three-day collection options, reduce or eliminate contamination, control compost flow, and maintain clean breezeways. Multifamily properties can enjoy proper composting bins and custom solutions based on their needs.