Composting in the Earth Tub

1
Composting in the Earth Tub

• Althea Skinner, Kaiba White, and Tatum
  Clinton-Selin

2
Project overview

• Sunday, Feb. 21 first planning meeting
• Monday, Feb. 23 Meeting with Chef Rick at Sid
  Rich
• Wednesday, Feb. 24 contacted Frank Rodriguez
  about getting bright trash cans for compost
• Friday, Feb. 27 trash cans arrive
• Tuesday, March 9 e-mailed Steve Cox (Sid
  Master)
• Tuesday, March 9 met with Nancy Rowe at F and E
• Tuesday, March 9 sent e-mail to Sid listserv
  about composting separation
• Wednesday, March 10 made announcements in Sid
  cafeteria at lunch and dinner about composting
  put up signs classifying compostable and
  noncompostable waste
• Thursday, March 11 Sent reminder e-mail to Sid
  listserv about noncompostables
• Friday, March 12 first food emptied into tub
  (from here on, daily dumping and thrice-weekly
  stirring)

3
Continued

• Monday, March 15 e-mailed Nancy about getting
  garbage men to dump
• Tuesday, March 16 met with Chef Ben Fonbuena
  about tub operation
• Wednesday, March 17 met with Nancy Rowe and
  Mike Polk about rotating tub, getting yard waste,
  and getting garbage men to dump
• Thursday March 18 Mike doesnt show for dumping
  demo rising amount of noncompostable waste
• Monday, March 22 put up large posterboard sign
  with composting dos and donts
• Tuesday, March 30 ordered litter claw to pick
  out noncompostables
• Thursday, April 1 last load of compost dumped
  into tub (end dumping, continue stirring 1-2
  times/week)

4
2004-2005 Composting

• Proposal institutionalization of Sid Earth Tub
  composting through FE and sustainability
  coordinator
• Cycle runs twice annually, not at all during
  summer
• 15 weeks (one semester) filling period
• 14 days baking in tub
• 30 days curing outside
• adfad

5
Composting in the future

• Earth tub composting is time- and labor-intensive
• Composting in general has many merits
• Education
• Publicity
• Cost reduction
• Sustainability 163,800 lbs. of food waste could
  be diverted from landfills for reuse annually
• Other methods should be explored