A TRANSITION INITIATIVE
Community Composting of Food Waste
First session: Friday 11 April 1 2 pm
If you have any containers, old baths or bins they
would be welcomed. !
The project so far: At the invitation of Eastside Roots, several
shops are bringing vegetable and fruit waste to Trinity, and placing it
in a pile by the entrance. This is an excellent and steady source
with which to feed the composting processes we will create. So far, there
are 24 square feet of wormeries, but more capacity is needed to process
the incoming vegetable waste. If you have any containers, old baths or
bins they would be welcomed.Timing: A small but regular input is needed
to manage such composting.
First session at Trinity Centre, Trinity Road, Bristol,
at 1 pm - 2pm Friday 11 April.
Then weekly on Fridays 1 pm 2 pm.
But the site is open access, therefore the compost management can happen at any time.
It seems to me that the low tech conversion of food wastes into useable
compost is just the sort of demonstration project that fits the ethos of
Transition Initiatives. It is an area of recycling that is quite
underdeveloped, and yet is simple to do, because it works with a natural
process, that of rotting. It only requires the acquiring of some skills
and being infected with the joy of composting!First session at Trinity Centre, Trinity Road, Bristol,
at 1 pm - 2pm Friday 11 April.
Then weekly on Fridays 1 pm 2 pm.
But the site is open access, therefore the compost management can happen at any time.
It is quite empowering as a large effect can be achieved through the use of very simple technologies, that have no carbon footprint, and produce local compost.
It would be good to demonstrate such an appropriate level of technology, as other composting schemes are using transport and high impact technologies to achieve composting.
Being self reliant in the rotting of food waste into soil, is an important step in building local resilience to the twin challenges of climate change and peak oil .
Aims:
- To locally convert food waste into compost.
- To start with the easier end of the food waste spectrum; that is the vegetable and fruit waste from local vegetable selling shops.
- To combine the food waste with equal quantities of cardboard, much of it also from these shops.
- To chop up the vegetable waste into one-inch fragments, and mix with equal quantities of cardboard shredded to 6 inch pieces.
- To compost it in a nuisance free manner, which sets a good example; by excluding rats and minimising flies.
- To use DIY and appropriate technologies in doing this.
The technologies:
An array of different devices and containers, some purpose-made, some from re-used containers such as baths; experiment, design and creation being the emphasis.
- Council supplied daleks(suitably rat-proofed with chicken wire).
- Rotating devices which tumble and turn waste therefore achieving hot composting
- Wormeries using old baths and purpose made worm units.
The site: Trinity centre, Eastside Roots Gardening project, which is open access, therefore participants can turn up any time, to manage the project. The compost will be used on the site (to transport or sell the compost involves regulations, and licencing: so best not to do for now&..)