1998 Apartment Residents Get Chance to Adopt Worms Beginning in late September, the City of Vancouver will have 100,000 composting worms up for adoption. The first 200 apartment residents to call will have the chance to own 500 Red Wigglers, a special type of worm that composts organic food waste. The boxes are ideal for apartment and condominium dwellers who don't have the space for larger composters. The worm bins produce a nutrient-rich soil conditioner that can be used for gardening. The City recognizes the huge potential for reducing landfill-bound waste by encouraging residents to compost at home.
Organic material makes up one-third of all household waste.
Home composting is cost effective because it eliminates the need for collection. This program is an extension of the City's on-going backyard compost bin distribution program, which has put more than 24,000 composters into Vancouver backyards to date. About 2,000 worm composters have been sold in previous years. The composters that have been sold are now diverting over 5,000 metric tonnes of waste from the landfill every year. Any Vancouver apartment residents interested in owning a worm composter should call the Compost Hotline at 736-2250 to sign up.