Prime Sirloin Buffet in Duncansville sees a lot of waste, but now that trash is being used as a resource.
“We’re taking something that’s waste and going to be turned into a landfill and making it good for the environment,” Don Delozier, owner of Prime Sirloin Buffet, told us. “Make it something useful for the environment.”
The restaurant is part of a food waste pilot program, so lately employees have been sorting leftovers into compost bins.
They’ve partnered with the Intermunicipal Relations Committee, who brings the bins to the Buckhorn Recycling Facility. The food waste is then combined with yard waste in compost rows.
“Just as we’ve tried to keep our bottles, cans, cardboard and paper out of the landfill, this certainly seems to be the next level of diversion that makes sense,” John Frederick, the executive director of the Intermunicipal Relations Committee, said.
Once completely composted, the food waste goes back into the environment as dirt. People often use it for lawns, gardens and flowerbeds.
It’s a way to turn trash into something useful for the community.
“I think it’s important to do that because of future generations running out of landfill space,” Delozier explained. “It’s just a good thing to try and recycle.”
The pilot program is expected to end next month. The IRC said it’s going to take some additional funding to keep it going. They’re asking businesses to reach out if they’d be interested.
Hollidaysburg Area Senior High School is also part of the food waste pilot program.