While emptying out the compost bin, I found several plastic skeletons from paper cups. I remember adding these to my bin in 2015 to see how well they’d break down… luckily the plastic remained mostly intact.I try to avoid any and all plastic getting into my compost piles these days- limit any paper products to those that state they are compostable, preferably not with a compostable plastic liner either (they need sustained high temps that most backyard piles don’t reach).
Although it takes forever and is tedious, I screen my compost twice to try removing all the crap that doesn’t belong… this will remove the majority of contaminants.
I’ll still find the occasional piece of plastic scrap that I probably picked up while sweeping leaves.
While I doubt I can keep my new compost pile plastic free, I’m going to give it my best shot.
Here’s to another couple years of composting!