Cowboy Compost, a Fort Worth-based compost recycler, held a pumpkin collection earlier this month. Photos courtesy of Brandon Castillo.

Dec. 11, 2018

On Dec. 1, Cowboy Compost set up five locations around Fort Worth to collect pumpkins from residents. Thanks to the city's Park and Recreation Department, we had collection points at two recreation centers, two parks as well as SiNaCa Studios on Magnolia Avenue. Altogether, we collected about 11,600 pounds of pumpkins or almost six tons!

The City of Fort Worth's landfill is approaching a crisis. As the city continues to grow, the Solid Waste Division predicts that the landfill will be full in less than 25 years. While the six tons we collected pales in comparison to the 2,275 tons accepted daily at Fort Worth's landfill, we have advanced the conservation of waste diversion along with other citizens who think this is a priority for our community.

At Cowboy Compost, we hope to make the Pumpkin Collection an annual tradition for Fort Worth, but we also hope that composting becomes a more familiar part of people's daily lives. According to the city, 30 percent of waste collected in Fort Worth is food, and we all can do our part to reduce our trash and extend the life of our landfill.

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