Note: The following update was originally published in the winter 2015 edition of Lower Saucon Township’s quarterly newsletter. The Saucon Valley Compost Center is located at 2011 Springtown Hill Road, Hellertown. It is open to residents of both Hellertown and Lower Saucon Township.
The year 2014 was another busy season for the Saucon Valley Compost Center, which is operated jointly by Hellertown Borough and Lower Saucon Township.
The entrance to the Saucon Valley Compost Center in Lower Saucon Township.
Over 8,500 visits were made by residents using the center, down slightly from the 8,800 visitors who were logged in during 2013. ID card use continued to work successfully again for the second year, allowing visitors to enter the center and log in more rapidly. During the season, 243 new ID cards were issued to first-time users, bringing the total registrations for the center to 2,148.
The center machine-grinds the leaves and yard waste material that is dropped off throughout the year, which produced approximately 402 tons of excellent ground mulch that is available to residents for free. Machine loading of the compost is available for a modest fee, which generated $4,680 in revenue for the year.
The agreement with neighboring Williams Township that allows them to dispose of yard waste collected from their residents at their municipal Public Works facility continued to operate successfully for a second year, resulting in approximately 165 tons of material being dropped off for a fee of $3,000, which–added to the machine loading revenue–helps defray the center’s cost for the machine grinds. This fee will be raised to $3,500 in 2015 due to the increase in grinding costs.
The compost center was open on Saturdays this past January again to accept Christmas trees.
The tentative 2015 opening date for the facility is planned for April 11, 2015.
In season, the compost center is normally open from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Fridays and Saturdays.
