Thursday, March 17, 2011

Compost Watch: A Lenten Carbon Fast Challenge

Today's Lenten Carbon Fast challenge:
"Reuse and recycle waste, and compost food waste to reduce the rubbish destined for landfill sites. If you don't have one, consider buying or making a composter. The average US household produces about 4.5 pounds of solid waste per day. Landfill sites are a major source of greenhouse gas emissions, with every pound of solid waste generating 2 pounds of greenhouse gases. Composting is methane-free and does not produce carbon. For information about composting and buying composters, see http://www.composting101.com/ .
This is a pretty easy challenge for us, since we have a yard. We've dedicated a space in the back for a compost heap; it's not quite as scientifically balanced as an elaborate composting system, but it gets the job done. I've previously written about Growing a Compost Pile and recently discovered that even in the dead of winter, inside the heap we get an amazingly busy crop of worms!!

I do notice that most of our neighbors have yard waste bins. This means that they are giving away the grass clippings and fallen leaves that I would just toss onto my compost heap. AND they pay for the privilege. Now, this material is not wasted; the City of Seattle sends it to Cedar Grove which turns it into very nice compost, which we can buy back at a great price. But it seems to me it'd be better for us to hold on to as much of it as possible, and compost in place. So I resolve to talk with my neighbors and see if they'd like to cut back on their expenses a little, either by composting in their yard, or by converting a little more of my back yard into a community yard waste area. I'm not sure that I'm ready for food waste, but I'll gladly take all the grass clippings and sticks they can provide!

We've gotten together before for community pot lucks and block watch, so why not a compost watch?

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