Earth Day 2025: A Guide to Local Action in Montana
Announcements
🌱 Compost Your Waste
April 22, 2025
♻️ Recycle Smarter
Bozeman: The City of Bozeman offers single-stream recycling, accepting clean paper, cardboard, aluminum, tin, steel cans, and bottle-shaped #1 and #2 plastics. Glass and plastics #3–#7 are not accepted curbside. For residents outside city limits, Gallatin Solid Waste Management District provides 14 free drop-off sites across the county.
Missoula: Missoula residents can utilize services like Garden City Recycling and Recycling Works, which offers the only glass transfer station in Western Montana. For a comprehensive overview, refer to the Missoula Recycling Guide.
Bozeman: Bozeman leads Montana with its year-round municipal organics collection, accepting food scraps, food-soiled paper, and yard waste. Alternatively, Happy Compost offers residential and commercial composting services in Bozeman, Belgrade, and Livingston, with free compost provided to subscribers each spring. Check them out here!
Missoula: Missoula Compost Collection provides weekly pickups and offers a compost starter kit during Earth Week (April 21–25, 2025). Their guidelines, based on Garden City Compost standards, help residents understand what can and cannot be composted.
🌍 Understand and Reduce Your Carbon Footprint
Bozeman: The City of Bozeman conducts bi-annual greenhouse gas emissions inventories to monitor progress toward climate goals. Residents can contribute by assessing their personal carbon footprints using tools like the EPA's Carbon Footprint Calculator.
Missoula: Climate Smart Missoula's Footprint Fund offers a local carbon footprint calculator, allowing residents to estimate their emissions and offset them by supporting community projects.
🌿 Additional Ways to Take Action
- Reduce Single-Use Plastics: Opt for reusable bags, bottles, and containers.
- Support Local Agriculture: Purchase from farmers' markets and local producers.
- Conserve Water: Implement water-saving techniques in your home and garden.
- Educate and Advocate: Participate in local environmental events and advocate for sustainable policies.
This Earth Day, let's harness our collective power to protect our planet. By making conscious choices in our daily lives, we contribute to a sustainable future for Montana and beyond.
Keeping Montana skies and mountains beautiful
