City’s chicken coop rebate helps subsidize backyard flocks

There are so many good reasons to raise chickens that it’s no surprise so many people keep a few hens in the backyard. If you’ve been longing for fresh eggs to eat or chicken fertilizer for your veggie garden, you’ll be happy to know that Austin Resource Recovery offers a free, hourlong chicken-keeping class to teach you everything you need to know to raise healthy, happy chickens. (First lesson: You’ll need more than one – chickens are flocking birds and don’t do well on their own.) Keeping backyard chickens supports the city’s zero-waste goals because chickens eat many food scraps that would otherwise end up in the landfill. The city estimates that each hen will consume about 7 pounds of food scraps a month, which is then transformed into rich compost for your garden. To tempt you further, the city offers a $75 rebate on chicken coops for all those who attend one of the chicken-keeping classes. (To be eligible for the rebate, you must pay the Clean Community Fee on your utility bill.) The next class is this Saturday, June 8, 10 a.m. at Callahan’s General Store, 501 U.S. Highway 183 S. See the entire schedule of classes here and learn more about the rebate program here.

Photo by furtwangl, licensed under CC BY 2.0.