Presented by XXXXXXXXXX 1406 Biology HCC West Campus Fall
Semester 2010 The Basics
Slide 2
Compost is: a natural process of breaking down and recycling
decomposed organic materials into Compost, which is a rich soil.
Humans can harness this natural process of returning nutrients into
soil by composting outdoors and indoors. WHAT IS COMPOST? 2
Slide 3
3 Compost is usually made by gathering plant material, such as
leaves, grass clippings, and vegetable peels, into a pile or bin
and letting it decompose as a result of the action of aerobic
bacteria, fungi, and other organisms. MAKING COMPOST
Slide 4
Composting is applied microbiology. Literally thousands upon
thousands of different species of microorganisms (2 million
individuals per gram) in a highly complex ecosystem. 4
Slide 5
WHY COMPOST? Composting has been around for centuries. In fact,
Historians have traced composting and the use of compost in Europe
to the Roman Marcus Cato over 2000 years ago. 5 Compost is one of
natures best mulches and soil amendments, and you can use it
instead of commercial fertilizers. Other reasons include
Slide 6
Soil conditioner. With compost, you are creating rich humus for
lawn and garden. This adds nutrients to your plants and helps
retain moisture in the soil. Recycles kitchen and yard waste.
Composting can divert as much as 30% of household waste away from
the garbage can. Introduces beneficial organisms to the soil.
Microscopic organisms in compost help aerate the soil, break down
organic material for plant use and ward off plant disease. 6
Slide 7
Good for the environment. Composting offers a natural
alternative to chemical fertilizers. Reduces landfill waste. Most
landfills in North America are quickly filling up; many have
already closed down. One-third of landfill waste is made up of
compostable materials. 7
Slide 8
GETTING STARTED OUTDOORS Choose a spot in your back yard or
select a compost bin There are many types of bins used to hold the
compost materials. There are commercially made square or cone
shaped plastic bins, homemade square bins often made of wood, and
rotating tumbler style bins just to name a few. 8
Slide 9
9 Each type of bin has its' own advantages and disadvantages
but all types of bins can be used to make great compost.
Slide 10
Select a Location for Your Compost Bin Choose a site that is
level and well drained Easily accessible year round Place the bin
over bare soil rather than concrete or paving to ensure that worms
and other beneficial organisms can make their way into the pile.
It's a good idea to remove any grass or plants and turn the soil to
a depth of about 6 - 8 inches. 10
Slide 11
Add Good Composting Materials Generally, composting ingredients
can be divided into two categories: Brown materials such as leaves,
hay, straw and paper and Green materials such as grass clippings,
fresh manure, vegetable trimmings and most green plant cuttings.
11
Slide 12
It's important to get the right mixture of ingredients in your
compost to ensure that it heats up nicely and breaks down
effectively. Getting the right mixture of brown (carbon) materials
to green (nitrogeneous) materials will make a huge difference.
Adding too much brown material will result in a compost pile that
takes a long time to break down. 12 RIGHT MIXTURE IS KEY
Slide 13
13 Adding too much green material will result in a compost pile
that is slimy and smelly that doesn't break down well.
Slide 14
BROWN COMPOSTING MATERIALS Brown materials such as leaves,
straw, hay and sawdust are high in carbon and are a source of
energy for the compost microbes. 14
Slide 15
GREEN COMPOSTING MATERIALS 15 Compared to brown materials,
green compost materials are much higher in nitrogen. Nitrogen is an
important element in amino acids and proteins, and is a vital
protein source for the compost microbes, helping to speed up the
process of decomposition.
Slide 16
16 Green materials that are very high in nitrogen should be
used sparingly, especially fresh grass clippings. Green composting
materials include: Vegetable peelings Grass clippings Coffee
grounds Fresh manure Sea weed Plants and plant cuttings
Slide 17
17 WHAT NOT TO ADD TO YOUR COMPOST! Vegetable fats and dairy
products slows down the composting process by excluding the oxygen
that helpful organisms need to do their job. If you add these
materials you will still have usable compost, it will just take
much longer.
Slide 18
18 The microorganisms in your compost need both carbon and
nitrogen to thrive; carbon for energy and nitrogen for protein
synthesis. For every one unit of nitrogen used by the bacteria they
also consume about 30 units of carbon. So in order to keep the
bacteria working efficiently we need to supply them with a mixture
that is about 30 parts carbon to 1 part nitrogen.
Slide 19
19 Needless to say, most materials don't have a ratio of 30:1.
However, if we know the approximate C:N ratio of the materials we
use in our compost, we can combine them so that the total mix will
be close to 30:1.
Slide 20
20 Example dry autumn leaves (C:N of about 50:1) kitchen scraps
(vegetable & fruit peelings, coffee grounds etc: about 12:1)
grass clippings (about 20-30:1) sawdust (fresh: 500:1, rotted
200:1)
Slide 21
21 Using different combinations of materials we will try to get
close to the magic 30:1 ratio. If we use 1 part dry leaves to 1
part kitchen scraps we would have the following: leaves 50/1 +
kitchen scraps 12/1 = 62/2 = 31/1 or 31:1
Slide 22
22 TURNING THE COMPOST Adding fresh oxygen into your compost
pile by turning it more frequently will help your compost break
down faster. Many of the bacteria that break down in a compost need
air to survive. A week or two after the pile is made, these
bacteria will start to die off as they start to use up the
available air in the pile.
Slide 23
23 This drop in the amount of bacteria will result in the
compost pile cooling off a bit from it's peak temperature. When
this happens it's time to turn the pile to get more air into
it.
Slide 24
24 When turning your compost pile: -move the drier material
from the outer edges of the pile into the center -break up any
clumps -get as much air into the mixture as possible. TURNING TIPS
Moisten any of the materials as you go if they seem dry.
Slide 25
25 It is best not to turn the pile while it is between these
temperatures, but rather when the temperature is below 104 degrees
F or above 131 degrees F. This keeps the pile operating at its
peak. The more the pile is turned, the faster the compost will
finish. TEMPERATURE Decomposition occurs most efficiently when the
temperature inside the pile is between 104 degrees F and 131
degrees F.
Slide 26
26 If you're using a plastic compost bin, an aerator tool will
make the job of turning much easier. A garden fork is often the
best tool for turning compost in an open style bin.
Slide 27
27 CHECK THE MOISTURE LEVEL The key to getting the correct
moisture in your compost is to moisten the pile without making it
too wet and soggy. Many people recommend adding moisture until the
material is as moist as a wrung out sponge. This is far too wet. If
you can squeeze water out of it, it's definitely too wet. By adding
some dry brown materials such as chopped leaves or hay will help
dry it out.
Slide 28
28 If you're in a climate with a lot of rain or moisture in the
air, like Houston, cover the top of the pile with a tarp or other
covering to keep it from becoming too wet. A moisture content of
between 50-60% is desirable in an active compost pile.
Slide 29
29 To judge the moisture content in your compost: Take a
handful of compost from the center of your pile and squeeze it in
your hand: If you can squeeze water out of it, the compost is too
wet. If the compost does not release water but crumbles apart when
released, it's too dry. If the compost does not release water but
stays compacted, it's just right.
Slide 30
30 SHRED SOME OF THE INGREDIENTS If there is one secret to
making compost faster, it is finely shredding the carbon rich
ingredients such as leaves, hay, straw, paper and cardboard.
Especially the Brown material
Slide 31
31 increases the surface area that the compost microbes have to
work on and provides a more even distribution of air and moisture
among the materials. Since it's the brown materials that take the
longest amount of time to break down, shredding them significantly
reduces the finishing time of compost.
Slide 32
32 If you don't have a chipper or shredder you can chop your
materials into smaller pieces with pruning shears or strong
scissors.
Slide 33
33 FINISHED PRODUCT Compost is finished when it's a dark, rich
color, crumbles easily, and you can't pick out any of the original
ingredients. It should have a sweet, earthy smell. If it's too
stringy or lumpy, it may need more time.
Slide 34
34 Keep in mind that the amount of time can vary. It can take
anywhere from three to four weeks to 12 months to produce
compost.
Slide 35
35 SUMMARY Composting is a way to go green and cut back on the
amount of waste going into landfills. Composting starts with scraps
of food. The composting process involves the break-down of these
scraps of food.
Slide 36
36 Decomposition depends on a number of things including:
temperature type of organic matter type of compost bin used how
fine the waste material is chopped how often its turned
Slide 37
37 Composting is an inexpensive way to create your own
nutrient-enriched soil for plants. Compost can be used for: - House
Plants - Soil amendment and fertilizer - Flower and Vegetable Beds
- New planting areas - Established planting areas - Lawn top
dressing - Compost Tea - Around trees
Slide 38
38 Composting is a form of recycling. Recycling Statistics The
U.S. is the #1 trash-producing country in the world at 1,609 pounds
per person per year. This means that 5% of the world's people
generate 40% of the world's waste. The average person throws away 4
pounds of garbage PER DAY. Each year Texans create enough waste to
fill two lanes of I-10 from Beaumont to El Paso ten feet high.
Slide 39
39 In 2008, Americans generated about 250 million tons of trash
and recycled and composted 83 million tons of this material. In
2008, Americans recovered about 61 million tons (excluding
composting) through recycling. Composting recovered 22.1 million
tons of waste.
Slide 40
40 Nationally, we recycled and composted 83 million tons of
municipal solid waste (MSW). This provides an annual benefit of 182
million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions reduced,
comparable to the annual GHG (green house gas) emissions from more
than 33 million passenger vehicles.
Slide 41
41 Recycling and composting 83 million tons of MSW saved 1.3
quadrillion Btu of energy, the equivalent of more than 10.2 billion
gallons of gasoline.
Slide 42
42 Recycling 1 plastic bottle not only saves anywhere from 100
to 1000 years in the landfill, but it also saves the environment
from the emissions in producing new bottles as well as the oil used
to produce that bottle.
Slide 43
43 Recycling is one of the most important actions one can take.
Only 1/10 of garbage gets recycled, but over half of it could
be.
Slide 44
44 The average person in our region creates 8 pounds of trash
daily. That's 8.2 million tons of trash from our region in one
year. Up to 70% of this trash is buried in landfills. Too Much
Trouble?
Slide 45
45 How Long to Breakdown (Biodegrade) Items?
Slide 46
46 Recycling is Much Faster!
Slide 47
47 Nationally: approximately 8,660 curbside recycling programs
exist, down from 8,875 in 2002. * * Source: For 2002 data: BioCycle
2006. For 2008 data: EPA, Supporting 2008 data tables and figures.
Recycling and Composting Collection Programs
Slide 48
48 For 21 years, the city of Houston has collected over 205
million pounds of recyclables. There are several programs to
recycle many different types of materials available throughout
Houston.
Slide 49
49 Recycling and composting is not the total answer to the
solid waste problem. Not everything can be reused. Some things will
still have to be thrown away and buried in a landfill or burned in
an incinerator.
Slide 50
50 But recycling can be cheaper than either burning trash or
hauling it to landfills. The key is to remove as much as possible
of the paper, plastic, glass, cans, and other reusable materials
from our trash. If the amount of garbage can be reduced, it'll cost
less to get rid of it.
Slide 51
51 What makes recycling programs work? Its the people, not the
programs. For years we have been throwing things out the same way.
We have to change. If we all work together, recycling becomes more
effective.