(Chelsea Update would like to thank Jean Vargas for the information and photos in this story.)
The Chelsea Zero Waste Coalition (CZWC) was recently invited to the Farm to Table Event sponsored by 5 Healthy Towns and held at Robin Hills Farm on Aug. 21.
The group was there to assist with making this event as close to zero waste as possible, thereby decreasing the materials that would end up in the landfill with adequate landfill space an increasing concern.
CZWC worked at the recent Sounds and Sights (S&S) Festival with the same goals. We felt that we made a significant difference by increasing the recycling and composting of waste, so we were anxious to do even better at this event.
The Farm to Table event provided a sit down dinner for 200 guests and the volunteers/workers. The organizers of this event made great efforts to achieve Zero Waste beginning with appetizers served on compostable dishes.
The other courses were served on glass plates that were washed and stored for future use. Water came in gallon jugs (not individual water bottles) and then to be recycled. The water glasses were reusable canning jars. Other beverages were served in recyclable plastic glasses and a few compostable ones. The napkins and table coverings were cloth and could be reused.
Composting in Chelsea is usually done at home and limited as to what can be composted. As at the S&S Festival, our advanced composting was made possible by the Zero Waste Washtenaw program and processed by WeCare Denali of Ann Arbor that manufactures and sells commercial compost. We were again privileged to have these resorces available for this event.
We had four volunteers from CZWC. We were generously assisted by the staff, other volunteers, and even attendees in processing waste. We separated all recyclables and compostables (including scraping leftover food) into appropriate receptacles. We were all laughing and saying “thank you” for each dirty dish and glass. Everybody was pleasant and kind to each other as we solved minor problems.
We had expected to work hard at such a large event and we did. We also had fun, learned a lot and met great people. We did well this time, learned ways to do it better next time, and look forward to continued improvement.
This event was: a beautiful day; a beautiful party; a beautiful venue; and a tremendous success for Zero Waste.
The only things I personally threw in the trash were 2 plastic straws and one handy wipe.
CZWC wants to thank all involved in the Farm to Table event. We look forward to more Zero Waste events in Chelsea and to working with you again. Together we can further improve our wonderful community.
