Submitted by supporters of the Cleveland Bike Composting project.

Cleveland Bike Composting seeks to accomplish a number of goals through a fairly simple idea. We seek to offer optional waste removal service to neighborhood residents who are concerned about their carbon footprint. Often overlooked in the how people evaluate their environmental impact is the role of food waste. Studies have shown that roughly 30% of all household waste could be converted to compost, a significant figure that should be considered in Cleveland's transition to a sustainable city. A team of cyclists will pick up and transfer food waste from residents to a deposit site, where the food waste will be converted to compost. This compost will then either be used in community gardens, thereby directly benefiting the neighborhood, or sold back to the subscribers. Often overlooked in the discussion around 'green-living' is the way in which waste is handled. Presently, most household waste is shipped outside of Cuyahoga County to methane producing landfills. By redirecting 30% of your own waste away from landfills and re-localizing your waste for community use not only do you benefit but your own environmental endeavors but your neighborhood as well.

The cycling has increased by over 200% in the past decade here in Cleveland. Also afoot in the past decade is the emergence of Cleveland as a national leader in local food production with hundreds of community gardens and dozens upon dozens of market gardens. Cleveland Bike Composting seeks to merge these two realms seamlessly to further propagate their influence in our city. In the same vein that subscribers of community supported agriculture programs, or CSA's, we seek to build a business that provides people the option to re-localize yet another facet of their life; their waste. Proving that jobs can be created and communities can benefit purely off what otherwise would be disregarded sends a clear message that we believe in each other, our environment, and the possibility of new and innovative businesses here in Cleveland.