In an effort to reduce organic waste in landfills, the IWMA provides SLO County residents a free compost pail that can be picked up from our office or requested from your solid waste hauler.

 All of your organic waste can go into your food scrap pail, and once your pail is full, it can be dumped into your green waste bin. 

Please note that compostable liners cannot be used in your compost pail. While they may break down over time, they do not decompose at the same rate as something like an orange peel or a slice of bread. These liners will clog up our anerobic digester where your scraps are turned into compost for local wine and agriculture companies to utilize (so cool! - check it out here). We recommend lining your compost pail with a piece of newspaper, brown paper bag or a paper towel instead. 

In an effort to reduce any unwanted smells coming from your pail, we suggest rinsing your pail regularly and sprinkling in some baking soda (your coffee grounds will help absorb odors too). Freezing the contents of your pail until garbage day also helps keep odors at bay! 

You can pick up a pail from Los Osos CSD, Monday-Friday from 9am-4pm, or The SLO County IWMA office is located at 555 Chorro St. Suite D-2, San Luis Obispo CA 93405, Monday-Friday from 8am-5pm.