Hi Everyone,
I’m Jenny, and I’m part of the Shenvironment group. We are: Robbie, Grace, Jon, Emily, Alex, Liam, Meghan, and me! We are all seniors at Shenendehowa High School and this blog is about our progress on a $77,137 composting grant we received from the very generous insurance company State Farm. So, this is our first post and our first update! : )
Last Thursday, we visited Union College to see their Earth Tub and composting system. We got so much more information than we expected and we were just amazed at the amount of work the school had done to increase their sustainability. Our guide through the visit was the Director of Dining Services, Dan Detora.
Here he is with our mentor Mrs. Coons!
At Union, they compost their kitchen waste, as well as waste in West College’s cafeteria. They have one Earth Tub, which they fill up for 30 days, then churn and decompose for 30 days. For the 30 days where the compost is churning, compostable waste is disposed of in regular garbage. This is why we would like to have two Earth Tubs, so we can stagger their composting cycles. Every year, Union College composts about 3 tons of waste. Think about this as 3 tons that you are saving from a landfill, and saving from your garbage collection bill! Additionally, composting does not use bags, which saves the school 17 cents per bag. The compost produced is used in the school gardens. They grow 800 lbs of vegetables a year, which are used in the college cafeterias to promote healthy eating. The Union College science department also uses it as a learning tool. Students in biology classes test the compost for its pH and mineral levels. This is an important step in composting, and we hope to incorporate a similar system at Shenendehowa.
This is their Earth Tub. They placed it on concrete, and raised it with wooden beams. Theirs includes a homemade fan filter. A fan is important because it is crucial that the compost does not get hotter than 140 degrees. At this temperature, the microbes that decompose the waste die. When Union College first got their Earth Tub, they filled it up halfway with “brown compost”–wood chips, newspapers, shredded papers, and the like–and then proceeded to fill it with “green compost”–food from the kitchens. The school has found no need to keep adding more brown compost, but it is possible that we will at Shenendehowa.
These are some amazing steps Union College has taken to support a greener environment. They received an A last year on their College Sustainability Report Card. : )
- An “Ozone Cafe” on Fridays: students volunteer as waiters and waitresses at an all vegetarian, all organic food cafe in one of the buildings. All food at this event is composted!
- Plastic, washable trays and glasses (they also told us that some schools such as RPI had gone “trayless”; trayless systems also save on food waste because they have been shown to reduce the amount of food that kids actually buy)
- Water in jugs, and milk in dispensers (these are free from the milk company for purchasing their milk)
- Liquid sugar to save on packaging
- Single-serve napkin dispensers from York (a company): students take fewer napkins if they can only take one at a time. Also, these are cheaper napkins and are compostable.
- Paper straws
- Working with local farms to purchase food
Dan also warned us of some problems Union encountered while working with the Earth Tub:
- Union College had a very rocky start in the first 6 months. There were several mechanical problems with the Earth Tub because they purchased a used model. Also, it was difficult for students to pick up on how to compost in the lunchrooms. However, their composting program is now working very smoothly. This just shows us that we can’t give up, and we can’t be afraid of tackling obstacles : )
- Some things that you cannot put into the composter: liquids (the high specific heat of water makes it harder for the compost to heat up and decompose), protein (includes beans and other nuts, creates smell and bugs), bones, pineapple cores, compostable silverware (need a higher temperature to compost, takes an additional 30 days)
- (However, Dan reassured us that we could put the following items in the composter: citrus fruits, wood, bread)
- Ithaca attempted to install 11 Earth Tubs at once on their campus. They experienced many problems, including mechanical difficulties and rodents. Because of this, our group has decided to start small–at High School East–and expand when we are able to.
The trip to Union was so informative, and we’d love to use some of their ideas in our own project. Union College really is a role model for all schools striving to be green, and we hope to continue to work with them. Okay, that’s it! Thanks for reading, and keep checking for more updates.
**We received the check from State Farm today in a small presentation in the Little Theater. We can now officially start working! Pictures will be up soon. : )
