Free Composting Drop Now Offered at Great Barrington Transfer Station

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GREAT BARRINGTON, Mass. — In collaboration with Berkshire Compost, the town Transfer Station will now accept composted food waste from residents of Great Barrington and Housatonic. 
 
The program is free.
 
Compost is food waste that would otherwise end up in a landfill: scraps leftover from cooking or meals, cardboard and certain paper products. 
 
Composting food waste significantly reduces the garbage that heads to the landfill. Compost is filled with nutrients used in farming and agriculture to fertilize soil.
 
"Composting is a natural, sustainable way to recycle food waste, it is used to build healthy soil for gardening and agriculture," said Rebecca Jurczyk, health agent for the Great Barrington Board of Health. "Composting is easy and helps to replenish our nutrient depleted soils."
 
Transfer station hours are Friday, 8 a.m. – 3  p.m., Saturday, 7 a.m.-3 p.m., and Sunday, 10 a.m.-3 p.m.
 
Accepted compost includes:
  • Fruit & vegetable peels
  • Dairy, eggs, grains, bread
  • Meat, fish, poultry
  • Bones, shells
  • Soiled cardboard
  • Napkins, paper towels
 
Not accepted:
  • Compostable-ware
  • Coffee cups, wrappers
  • Plastic, metal, glass
  • Berkshire Compost is a commercial composting company serving Southern Berkshire towns.
 
The composting program is a project of the Board of Health, which received funding from the Berkshire Public Health Appliance to pilot the program for one year.

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South County Road Maintenance

LEE, Mass. — The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) is announcing crews will be conducting daytime and overnight hour guardrail repair, drainage work, bridge repair, and tree trimming operations at various locations and times on I-90 eastbound and westbound during the week of Monday, May 20.

Lane closures will be in place during the construction operations and traffic will be able to travel through the work zones.  The schedule for the work and lane closures will be as follows: 

Otis/Blandford 

  • Guardrail and drainage work will be conducted on I-90 westbound between mile marker 22.0 to 26.6 from Monday, May 20, through Thursday, May 23, from 7:00 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. the next morning. The work is expected to conclude by 5:00 a.m. on Friday, May 24.

Otis

  • Bridge repair operations will be conducted nightly on I-90 eastbound and westbound at mile marker 22.5, from Monday, May 20, through Thursday, May 23, from 7:00 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. the next morning. The work is expected to conclude by 5:00 a.m. on Friday, May 24.

Blandford

  • Bridge repair operations will be conducted nightly on I-90 eastbound and westbound at mile marker 26.4 from Monday, May 20, through Thursday, May 23, from 7:00 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. the next morning. The work is expected to conclude by 5:00 a.m. on Friday, May 24.

Russell

  • Tree trimming work will be conducted daily on I-90 westbound between mile marker 30.0 to mile marker 31.0, from Monday, May 20, through Thursday, May 23, from 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. each day. 

Stockbridge/West Stockbridge

  • Guardrail and bridge repair work will be conducted nightly on I-90 eastbound and westbound from mile marker 3.0 to 6.0, from Monday, May 20, through Thursday, May 23, from 7:00 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. the next morning. The work is expected to conclude by 5:00 a.m. on Friday, May 24.

Stockbridge

  • Bridge repair operations will be conducted daily on I-90 eastbound and westbound at mile marker 7.5, from Monday, May 20, through Thursday, May 23, from 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. each day.

West Stockbridge

  • Bridge repair operations will be conducted daily on I-90 eastbound and westbound at mile marker 0.6, from Monday, May 20, through Thursday, May 23, from 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. each day.

Lee

  • Drainage work will be conducted nightly on I-90 eastbound and westbound from mile marker 8.0 to 14.0, on Monday, May 20, through Thursday, May 23, from 7:00 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. the next morning. The work is expected to conclude by 5:00 a.m. on Friday, May 24.

Appropriate signage, law enforcement details, and messaging will be in place to guide drivers through the work area. 

Drivers traveling through the affected areas should expect delays, reduce speed, and use caution.  

All scheduled work is weather dependent and subject to change without notice. 

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