That banana peel. That old tomato. Those potato skins. That rogue heel of a bread loaf. Where do you put these things, these things you would normally never eat? Which road would you take? The path more traveled—the trashcan? Where these items go from the trashcan to the dumpster, and then all the combined trash in this dumpster gets transported to a landfill and then stuffed into the ground like stuffing a sleeping bag into its case. Choosing this path would mean creating more waste than cannot break down quickly. This idea of waste is completely constructed by society and is manmade. There is really no such thing as waste. What we use and get rid of simply takes the problem of what we do not want elsewhere.
Or would you take the path less traveled, the path of composting? This is a path where you can put all of your organic material together, contribute less material to the landfill, and give back to the land in most natural way possible. Composting is the option to recycle your food waste and give back to the earth what is has provided for your needs.
You can reduce your impact on the earth’s resources and significantly and help create a more balanced earth by composting food waste. It simply starts with a bin, your fruits, vegetables, and eggshells, and a mind to take action in reducing waste, to be part of the solution.
Composting has many environmental benefits, including the previously mentioned fact of lessening the waste we direct into landfills. Composting is also a great, nutrient-rich fertilizer that can lessen the need for chemical and synthetic fertilizers. It adds nutrient-rich humus that drives healthy plant growth and helps restore depleted land. Since composting recycles food and yard waste and can be used as a fertilizer, you can make a more direct loop from the food you eat to make fertilizer that can be added to gardens that produce food that you can eat, and so continues the cycle. Composting also has the personal benefit of lowering your overall carbon footprint.
Take a look at the links below that possess very helpful information on home composting. These links might just help you put less trash on the curb for your local waste management system.
Here is a link from the Environmental Protection Agency on composting at home. It provides great guidelines for composting both in your home and outside.
http://www2.epa.gov/recycle/composting-home
Here is another link that provides many different options and great tips for composting like what can and cannot be added, and a great step by step process on how to get your own composting started.
http://eartheasy.com/grow_compost.html
Take care and compost on,
Sarah