Compost whately grades 4 6 for bill obear
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Transcript of Compost whately grades 4 6 for bill obear
Composting at Whately Elementary School
Bill Obear, Bear Path FarmPresentation by: Ms. Amy Donovan, Program Director
What is Compost?
• In nature, soil organisms called decomposers eat plants, leaves, and dead animals.
• The end result is soil, or compost.• That compost then nurtures new plants
to grow.
What is Compost?
Composting uses that natural cycle to dispose of food waste, making soil in the process.
Compost is good for plants: • adds nutrients to soil• reduces need to water• replaces chemical fertilizers• used on farms for growing vegetables• in home gardens for growing flowers, vegetables• in landscaping
Farmland
Finished compost
Composting keeps food out of landfills (dumps).
• Composting saves space in landfills.• Our local landfills are almost full!• Where will be put our trash in the future?
Composting helps slow Climate Change
Climate Change (or Global Warming) is caused by greenhouse gases in our atmosphere.
Greenhouse Gases:Carbon Dioxide MethaneNitrous Oxide
The Climate Change Connection
When food waste (and paper) decay in a landfill, methane is released.
Methane is a greenhouse gas 23 times more powerful than carbon dioxide.
Over 20 years, methane from a landfill can be 72 times more potent than carbon dioxide!!
Methane pipe at a landfill
Why doesn’t composting release methane? Because oxygen is part of the composting process. There is no oxygen in a landfill.
Compost bins made from reused pallets
3 “sizes” of composting:
• Small: An indoor worm bin uses red wiggler worms to eat food waste (vermicomposting)
• Veggies, fruits only
• Medium: Backyard composting
• Veggies, fruit, bread• No meat, dairy, oils• 5th grade class has
this type of bin.
Large: Commercial Composting at Bear Path Farm in Whately. Accepts all food: meat, cheese, oils…Paper: napkins, straw wrappers…
Windrows at Bear Path Farm
Bill Obear stands by his equipment at Bear Path Farm. www.bearpathfarm.com
Whately transfer station:
FREE compost programAt Whately transfer station:Just like what we do at school!
“Large sized composting”Whately Elementary Cafeteria Composts ALL food & paper!
…because it goes to Bear Path Farm!
DO compost in the cafeteria:
All food:• ALL table scraps/leftovers• Meat, chicken, fish, cheese, eggs, eggshells• Fruit & vegetable peels• Bread, rice, pasta, cookies
DO compost in the cafeteria:
Paper from the cafeteria:• Napkins• Paper towels• Straw wrappers • Paper plates: Chinet• Paper cups: Dixie• Egg cartons
DO NOT compost in the cafeteria: :
• Liquid• Plastic utensils• Straws• Tissues • Plastic bags and wrappers (sandwich bags, Saran/plastic wrap,
candy wrappers)
• Butter packets, cracker packets
• Large amounts of bones• Paper towels with chemicals on them
What can and can’t be composted in the cafeteria from these trays?
“Medium sized composting”Composting at home or in the 5th
grade’s garden compost bin.
This compost system is different than what we do in the cafeteria:
No meat, bones, dairy!(animal products)
Avoid large amounts of paper.
What can be composted at home or in the 5th grade bin?
YES; Green/Nitrogen-rich:• Veggies, fruit, & peels• Bread, rice, pasta, grains• Coffee grounds, paper coffee
filters, tea bags• Eggshells• Grass clippings, yard waste
NO; will smell and attract animals:
• Meat, fish, bones• Cheese, dairy• Fat, grease, oils,
peanut butter• Cooked foods with lots
of sauces/ butter• Diseased or insect-
ridden plants• Weeds which spread
by roots and runners• Weeds with seeds
YES; Brown/Carbon-rich:• Fall leaves• Straw, hay• Shredded newspaper or paper• Chinet paper plates (rip up)• Egg cartons (rip up)• Wood chips• Old potting soil
How does it work?A compost bin needs:
• Water: material in bin should be as damp as a wrung out sponge. Add water if not, and when building pile. Add sparingly in winter.
• Air/ Oxygen: mix/stir occasionally
• “Green” materials: (nitrogen) food waste
• “Brown” materials: (carbon) leaves, hay, shredded and soaked newspaper, egg cartons
• Microorganisms: eat material and heat it up
Food WebOf the Compost Pile
Keep it cookin’
• Each time you add food waste, bury in center and cover with leaves/ brown materials
• Add leaves or brown materials regularly• Add water regularly• Stir entire pile every 6 weeks or so.• Once you have a bin full of materials (in 6-
12 months), stop adding materials and stir more frequently.
• When the compost is finished, use on gardens and when planting new plants
Questions? Need more info?
Bill Obear, Bear Path Farmwww.bearpath [email protected]
Amy Donovan, Franklin County Solid Waste Districtwww.franklincountywastedistrict.org(413) 772-2438 [email protected]