FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Halloween is now over, and it's time to say goodbye to your porch's Jack-O-Lanterns, and hello to your holiday decorations. However, before you throw your carved creations away, maybe think about other options.
The City of Fayetteville held a Pumpkin Pageant for residents to bring their pumpkins and vote for a winner. The pumpkins were then donated to the city's recycling facilities.
"Whenever you feel like you are done with your pumpkin you can bring it to one of our drop-off locations, and we'll compost it here," said Environment Director for the City of Fayetteville Faebyan Whittle. "[We then] sell the compost back to the community."
If a pumpkin sits in a landfill it will decompose over time, but composting prevents some greenhouse gasses from releasing.
"It reduces methane gases that are created in a landfill," said Whittle. It's also better to not have unnecessary waste in the landfill.
"We want to divert as much of our waste out of the landfills as we possibly can," said Arts and Cultures Director Joanna Shehan Bell. "Taking very large pumpkins and diverting them into our compost makes for a more sustainable future for Fayetteville."
The city also wants to encourage those to bring food scraps to composting sites all year round.
"The meats, bones, and food scraps that you wouldn't usually want to put in your backyard you can bring to our drop-off locations along with your pumpkin," said Whittle.
You can also leave pumpkins out for any wildlife or livestock or try composting them in your backyard. Fayetteville will accept any pumpkins as long as they are not painted. You can take your pumpkins to any of the city's composting or recycling facilities as well as the locations below.
Margaret's Food Truck - Drop-off available 24/7
Trinity United Methodist Church - Drop-off available 24/7
Good Shepherd Lutheran Church - Drop-off available 24/7
Watch 5NEWS on YouTube.
Download the 5NEWS app on your smartphone:
Stream 5NEWS 24/7 on the 5+ app: How to watch the 5+ app on your streaming device
To report a typo or grammatical error, please email KFSMDigitalTeam@tegna.com and detail which story you're referring to.