Once again, the quest continues to distinguish what is “green-living” tomfoolery from what is a legitimate eco-friendly lifestyle. Now that we’ve covered recycling and bio-degradable products, lets move on to simplest of them all…COMPOST. I’m sure that a good portion of you are familiar with this term and the general concept: using scraps of organic material to produce nutrient rich soils and fertilizers for landscaping/gardening/crops. However, there are a few tricky components to composting that may hinder the creation of the best, most beneficial final glob of decayed super-soil.

For a little behind-the-scenes info, the composting process requires four basic things: Carbon, oxygen, nitrogen, and water. The microbial oxidation of carbon creates heat, thus CARBON is the energy source of this whole operation. OXYGEN assists the oxidation of the carbon and aids in the decomposition process. Then NITROGEN is utilized to help foster the growth of more of those little microorganisms that oxidize carbon. Finally, the “just right” amount of WATER is required to maintain an ideal state for the organisms to be happy without causing anaerobic conditions (since oxygen is needed for materials to break down) (“Composting for the Homeowner”). All of this decay sounds marvelous I know, but like most things in life, proper composting requires the right balance of those four components. The ideal ratio that will allow beneficial bacteria to thrive is a carbon-nitrogen mixture of 30 parts to one. For example, fresh grass clippings average a 15 to one ratio and dry fall leaves have a 50 to one ratio, so when you combine them together the better balance leads to better compost (Compost Mix Calculator).
There are a ton of benefits to composting when this proper balance is achieved. People can reduce the need for chemical fertilizers, which end up draining into the ocean when its rains through storm drains. When those fertilizers wind up in the open ocean, it kills plankton, the foundation of the marine food chain. No plankton, no marine life. Also, this homemade substance is like fertilizer on ‘roids. By using compost (the broken down usable product is called “hummus”) it can actually yield more crops than traditional chemical options. Its also quite affordable; in some cases its even free! Since you only need to use the scraps of organic matter leftover after mowing the lawn, or making dinner, the savings are huge compared to buying expensive bags of fertilizers. The only capital cost would be buying a composting bin. Composting keeps excess things out of landfills as well. This is especially important since the decomposition of natural things, like food scraps and plants, releases methane and leachate into the air (two greenhouse gasses). There are a ton more up-sides to composting, I could go on for days. (“Composting for Facilities Basics”).

Now, everything sounds all honkey-dory with compost but there are a few drawback and some things to avoid throwing into the big decaying heap. First, people may get lazy and not follow the proper steps to create the most useful home-made fertilizer, there is after all time and up-keep involved. Some may neglect to mix the stuff up and this leads to the pile over-heating. If the composting materials create too much warmth, then a lot of steam will escape which throws off the proper water level. Second, there are numerous things that should never work their way into the compost bin. Bread products (cakes, ect.), cooking oils, meat products, dairy, and rice all attract unwanted critters like rats. Rice also proves to be a catalyst for a bacteria that is harmful to the decomposition process. Walnuts should  either end up in your stomach (rich in Omega-3s!) or the trash because they contain a compound called juglone, which is toxic to certain plants and vegetation. Stubborn plants like weeds are also a No-No because they might grow in the heap rather than break down (Baskind).
Composting has so many benefits that it seems like an obvious thing to partake in. Its super cheap, helps the environment (land and ocean), and helps grow more beautiful plants and healthier crops. Well, not always. If the proper precautions are not taken, then the composting process will wind up becoming a ratchet mess that only attracts unwanted pests and harms your plants. So, its it worth all the fuss? I suppose it all depends on how much will power you have!

Sources:

Baskind, Chris. “30 Things You Should Never Compost.” MNN – Mother Nature Network. Mother Nature Network, 16 Mar. 2010. Web. 17 Feb. 2013.

“Compost Mix Calculator.” Compost Mix Calculator. Klickitak County, n.d. Web. 17 Feb. 2013.

“Composting for Facilities Basics.” EPA. Environmental Protection Agency, n.d. Web. 17 Feb. 2013.

“Composting for the Homeowner – University of Illinois Extension.” Materials for Composting. University of Illinois, n.d. Web. 17 Feb. 2013.

Many people today try their best to promote an earth-conscious lifestyle. However, little do they know they might be doing more harm than good! So, in an attempt to set these people straight I will try to clear up a few of the misconceptions. Last week, recycling was the hot topic. This week, we will move onto another tricky green concept: Biodegradables. Yes I know, sounds boring. BUT read on and be shocked!

Biodegradable: What does this word mean to you? Something that can completely vanish into the dirt like it never existed in the first place? WRONG…ish. According to the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Green Guide, a product or package qualifies as biodegradable if it “completely breaks down and returns to nature, decomposing into elements found in nature within a reasonably short period of time after customary disposal”. Yes, biodegradable products can eventually breakup into smaller and smaller pieces as time goes on, but it takes much longer than people realize. There are two main reasons for this.

First, biodegradable things require certain ideal conditions to break down in a timely manner. Sunlight, moisture, and air are crucial in the proper breakdown of these products and packaging. When these criteria are not met, there’s no breakdown and that leads to the second reason these products don’t disappear. Where is one place that does not have air, sunlight, or excessive moisture? Landfills! That’s right, biodegradable things cannot do

their thaaaang as efficiently when they end up in landfills. In fact “researchers have found in landfills legible 30 year old newspapers; 5 year old lettuce and 10 year old hotdogs,” the BPI said in a recent article (Compostable vs. Biodegradable). Now that’s nasty, folks. But it gets worse…

Lately, the green thinking trend has gone a little, well, over kill. Now everyone has jumped on the bandwagon, but do they really understand the concepts of an environmentally friendly lifestyle? Each blog will expose the truths and clarify the misconceptions involved with environmentalism while providing some recommendation on how to green up your act! One topic that always seems to confuse people is the difference between recyclable, biodegradable, and compostable products. SO, this blog will set things straight week by week, starting by focusing on recycling. Then once these basics have been but to rest, we will explore other misconceptions.

Recycling is something the majority people have heard of and most likely participated in at least once in their life. Materials such as paper, cardboard, plastic, glass, aluminum, and most electronic waste parts can be collected, reprocessed, and ultimately reused again. (which greatly reduces the amount of garbage in landfill and conserves natural resources like petroleum). This is by far and away the most commonly used method of earth-friendly disposal, however it is not completely fool-proof. It is very easy to be misled about what can and can’t be recycled.

For example, on a lot of packaging the famous “three arrows” symbol, which stands for the three R’s of recycling, appears to signify that that particular plastic bottle (cardboard box, ect.) is recyclable, right? WRONG. Just because that symbol is on a package does not automatically mean its eligible for reuse. The small number (#’s 1-7) often found in the center of the three arrows indicates the type of resin used in order to ease sorting, and while most numbers (1, 2, 4, 5) can be recycled, if a container has a number 7, 6, or 3 on it, it might be better to avoid it. Some number 7 plastics can be reused to make more plastic bottles or plastic lumber. However, other number 7 plastics made with polycarbonate can actually release harmful chemicals into the air and have been linked very detrimental effects on brain and behavior development of unborn children. Thats not good…(“What Does the Recycle Number Mean on a Plastic Container?”).

Also, many have heard that glass is the most easily recycled material out there…once again, all wrong. In fact, glass is the most expensive thing for recycling plants to gather, melt down, and repurpose, especially if the glass shatters into fragments and gets all over the other materials. Debbie Brady of Pocatello, Idaho’s Sanitation Department notes that glass is made of sand, and thus will not hurt the environment. It can be disposed of with the normal trash and sit for thousands of years in a landfill without any environmental impact. (“Why We Don’t Recycle Glass in Pocatello”). Surprisingly, this is great news because sometimes recycling facilities get so overwhelmed with materials that they have to dump the excess into landfills anyways. So why not let that portion of land-fill bound materials be glass if it just breaks down into sand and doesn’t release any greenhouse emissions? This does’t mean its bad to recycle glass in the least bit, but  if a glass jar ends up in the trash, don’t fret about it too much.

Fortunately, one good thing to expose about recycling is that its actually a lot less complicated than some obsessive compulsive environmentalists make it seem. Plants now a days have much more effecient equipment that can easily separate glass from aluminum from plastic with ease, making it much easier for average Joes to separate their recyclables. Why?

Because they don’t have too! Modern recycling plants have machines that use things like magnets to target specific materials. These are called single-stream recycling plants, and they are becoming increasingly common. Single-stream recycling is a fantastic innovation because people are far more likely to recycle when they don’t think of it as a hassle, trying to determine which materials go in what bin. (“8 Misconceptions About Recycling”). Plus, it allows for automated truck routes for the collection trucks, conserving gas and allowing for less air pollution. With an increasing amount of cities beginning to recycle, this will make the massive amounts of bottles, glass, papers, and metals much easier to process and repurpose. Some facilities still need this update, but this system appears to be the future of the recycling industry.