Composting
Composting is an easy way to cut down on your waste output and, at the same time, create a useful product. Home composting doesn’t require a lot of technical know-how. In fact, it is almost impossible to stop organic material from composting. With a little understanding of what you are doing, some patience and minimal effort you can easily create compost using a system that’s right for you.
Why Compost?
Money and Resource savings
- Finished compost that you produce yourself is free.
- Compost helps the soil retain nutrients and moisture, saving money on fertiliser and time spent watering.
- It saves fuels used to transport organic waste to disposal sites.
Environment
Healthy Soils
- It returns nutrients to the soil and helps maintain soil quality and fertility.
- Finished compost is a mild, slow-release, natural fertiliser that won’t ‘burn’ plants like chemical fertilisers.
- It improves the soil’s texture, water retention and drainage.
Climate Change and Pollution Prevention
- Transporting compostable waste to disposal produces air pollution, which also fuels climate change.
- Organics in landfills break down anaerobically (without oxygen) to produce methane gas – a greenhouse gas 21 times more harmful than carbon dioxide as a contributor to climate change.
- Chemical fertiliser may leach nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium into sewer systems, lochs and streams resulting in water pollution whereas compost is a pollution-free alternative.
Composting Tips
Getting the Most From Your Compost Bin
In order to get the best compost it is important to put the right mix of green and brown waste in your compost as well as providing the mix with plenty of air.
Greens: These are moist materials that compost quickly.
Browns: are dry woodier materials that are slower to compost. These help provide structure in the heap.
Ideally the mix should be 50:50, too many greens in your bin will result in a sludgy mixture which is too wet whereas too many browns in your bin will result in a mixture which is too dry and will slow the composting process. To get air into the mix scrunch up card and paper instead of tearing them before adding to the bin. This will create air pockets within the heap and remove the need to turn the compost (you can still turn the compost if you wish, and this should speed up the process, but you don't have to).
What Can be Composted
Do: fruit scraps and vegetable peelings, tea bags and coffee grounds, egg shells, paper and card, flowers, grass cuttings, garden trimmings, sawdust, young weeds, and bedding from vegetarian pets.
Don’t: cooked food, meat, fish, dairy, coal ash, cat or dog poop, nappies, bread, diseased plants, weeds about to seed and non biodegradable items.
Wait While Nature Does the Rest
A common anxiety is that nothing appears to be happening on the heap. In fact it is, but it's only doing so very slowly. The Shetland climate does tend to slow things down somewhat, but there are ways to give nature a gentle push.
- Heat, extra warmth will help maintain a higher temperature and aid decomposition. Situate your composter in a sunny position. If you have a wooden open topped unit, insulate with a compost duvet or old carpet.
- Humidity, the Shetland weather can throw down a lot of rain, this can make a heap too wet and slow down decomposition. The insulation tops above will also help to maintain optimum humidity.
- Activators, these generate the heat to break down organic matter in the heap. Mixing in some manure will help, or try adding an organic accelerator: Many Shetland residents have had success with Garotta and seaweed, although there are many others you can experiment with.
Further Information
If you have any further questions about composting then please contact Environment and Resource Management Unit staff on 01595 744850 or e-mail recycling@shetland.gov.uk.
The Environment and Resource Management Unit have produced a quarterly composting Newsletter (Winter 09/10, Winter 09, Autumn 08), if you would like to sign up to receive an copy of this then please contact recycling@shetland.gov.uk or phone 01595 744850.