Arlington Hts. board approves composting

Composting will soon be legal in Arlington Heights.

The village board Monday gave preliminary approval to standards for residential composting, and is expected to take further action at the next regular meeting Feb. 7.

Compost is defined in the ordinance as plant material, like leaves and vegetable peels, allowed to decompose to create fertilizer.

The rule that attracted the most attention requires compost containers to be at least 5 feet from a property line.

That means they can’t go in a corner of a back yard, where homeowners often site them, complained Trustee John Scaletta.

But Village President Arlene Mulder pointed out that the corner of a lot farthest from a homeowner’s patio might be close to the neighbor’s patio or swing set. She also said that when a homeowner installs landscaping instead of a fence, the inside of that hedge or garden bed is already a few feet from the lot line. Compost containers will be allowed only in back or side yards, but it became clear at the meeting that most containers will not fit legally on the 7-foot-wide side of most small lots because of the 5-foot setback requirement.

Other standards insist that any compost be in a container; that the container be no larger than 5-by-5-by-5 feet; and that there be only one container per yard.

“Only the following organic materials are allowed in the compost pile: soil, grass clippings, waste sod, straw, leaves, cooked and uncooked fruit and vegetables” and small amounts of fertilizer, says the new ordinance.

Accumulated solid waste—including landscape waste—is currently outlawed by village ordinance.

Arlington Heights will have no compost police, agreed James McCalister, director of health services. Officials from the health services department inspect compost only when they receive complaints.

Sean Freres, environmental health officer, said when the village gets complaints it is usually about piles of yard waste that is compost in name only. Rarely does the department have to issue a ticket and go to court because most homeowners clean up the problem when notified, he said.

Freres insisted that properly maintained and frequently turned compost will not have odor or rodents.

Ed Coops is a resident who told the board the 5-foot rule is necessary for corner lots like his own. He said he supports composting, but the village needs the ability to enforce rules.