( CNN ) Have you ever thrown away a banana peel or dumped expired milk into the garbage ? Well , if you do it in Seattle you are in for a fine . Under a new policy , passed 9-0 by the Seattle City Council earlier this week , those who fail to compost `` food waste and compostable paper '' will be penalized . The new program will come into effect in January 2015 for commercial establishments and residences . It will be enforced by the Seattle Public Utilities commission . Seattle has had a similar rule for noncompostable recyclables for nine years . After receiving two warnings , residents and businesses will be fined $ 50 for dumpsters and a more modest $ 1 for waste at single-family homes . Previously , the utilities commission left residents and businesses a note that asked them to compost . If they did not comply , the city refused to collect the garbage . 4 ways to combat food waste at home . So , why is Seattle making residents compost ? The city was not going to meet its self-imposed goal of recycling 60 % of all waste . `` Compostables are about 30 % of what is still in the garbage and they are the largest target we have to help us reach our goals , '' said Timothy Croll , solid waste director of the utilities commission , which asked the city council for the change . `` Also , composting food waste reduces emissions of methane , which is a strong cause of climate change . '' Although the utilities commission contends inspecting garbage and issuing fines for noncompliance will have `` minimal costs '' and save money in the long run by reducing landfill usage , not everyone agrees . `` This program is not free , it costs money and nobody is looking at the real cost of this [ program ] , '' said Todd Myers , environment director for the conservative Washington Policy Center . Opinion : Composting in a city : Are you kidding ? Myers said the program costs could be put to better use . `` There are a lot of ways to spend this money to actually do good for the planet . ... Seattle is very good at doing things that feel good , but very bad at doing things that do good for the planet , '' said Myers . But Croll said the program is worth it . `` Nine years ago , we prohibited recyclable paper and containers from the garbage and this created a significant rise in our recycling rate , '' Croll said . The program is modeled on a similar one instituted in San Francisco in 2009 . Last year , then-Mayor Michael Bloomberg proposed requiring New York residents to compost . New York 's city council only extended the requirement to commercial establishments .
Seattle City Hall mandates solid waste composting . Residents will be fined $ 1 for violations . Critics say program is a waste of money . San Francisco was the first city to ban composting .