Composting
In creating a compost bin I used an old trash can with a firmly fitted lid. I first cleaned it out of any trash residue and then poked small holes all around it with a screw driver. The firmly fitted lid is important because it will enable me to turn the can on the side and roll it around. Besides just being fun this is helpful for a few reasons. First it rotates the material being composted which is very important in the decomposing process. Secondly, when it comes time to use my new nutrient rich soil in the garden, I will save time by being able to move my compost bin right to the area I need it at. Now it comes time to start to fill my container. If you’re anything like I am constantly taking food scraps outside can become a hassle great enough to scrap the whole project but the idea of them sitting on the kitchen table isn’t much better. To fix this I am using an acme paper bag, which is big enough to collect at least a few days worth of my food scraps, in the freezer. This way you only have to empty it every few days and by keeping it in the freezer it will not smell or attract flies, also the bag itself is compostable. The material that can go into a compost bin doesn’t end in the kitchen either. I took advantage of the warm weather this week and cleaned my gutters of leafs which all went directly into the bin. Leafs and other “filler” materials such as straw or small sticks, actual helps the decomposition process too. They speed the rate up by keeping the conditions inside the compost aerobic, minimize the formation of volatile fatty acids from certain foods, and keep a beneficial Carbon to Nitrogen ratio in the soil. (Y.Eklind and H.Kirchmann. “Composting and Storage of Organic Household Waste with Different Litter Amendments”, Department of Soil Sciences, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences)

This week our group has been working on recycling. Recycling is a big part of our project of eco friendly living. It is very important because according to Susan Carmichael, director of the Montgomery Clean City Commission and the city's recycling division, more than 70% of the average households waste can be recycled, and a majority of what is left after then can be composted and turned into valuable garden nutrients. The sad part about this is that in Philadelphia the actual recycling rate is only around 7%. Think about that unnecessary amount of waste, 30% of which is incinerated and the other 70% which just sits in dirty landfills. So the question I would like to answer is why only 7% of Philadelphia’s waste is recycled when close to all of it could be? Specifically, this week I will create a compost and attempt to recycle 100% of the plastic I use.