Description of Project
On campus, a large portion of waste generated by students, staff and faculty is food waste. Often, much of this waste is biodegradable and can be used in composting piles to create healthy, rich fertilizers. During the course of this week we aim to design a composting system for food wastes rather than ending them to landfills. This will significantly decrease the amount of food waste on campus sent to landfills while also redirecting the waste to create resourceful fertilizers.
In order to complete the project, we will conduct research on the current state of food waste generated at Colorado College. We will find ways to implement a better composting system by identifying what type of waste is compostable and how we can separate it correctly. The final composted product will be sent to the groundskeepers for a fertilizer replacement to be used in flowerbeds and gardens on campus. It there is an excessive amount, we might even be able to take it into the community. After the system becomes established, we will assess the success of the project through financial impacts and researching how the waste stream was reduced.
Schedule
Monday- research composting and what materials are compostable, how we can speed up the process by adding a catalyst, and how to use the final product on campus.
Tuesday- contact and interview individual connected with food waste on campus: Greg Soukup, former manager of the Colorado College food service at Sedexho, Maggie Mangan, who wrote a report on the state of food at Colorado College, and Max Harper, who is the current leader in creating a successful composting system on campus.
Wednesday- visit Rastall dining hall to contact and interview Randy Kruse, manager and coordinator, to find out how to change the cleaning process in order to separate compostable materials from uncompostable materials.
Thursday- visit proposed site of composting pile and research finances needed to obtain an adequate composting barrel.
Friday- public outreach component, advertisement of workshop, create web site, evaluate Ecological Footprint, and work with the rest of the class to finalize Tuesday's presentations.
Monday- last minute follow-ups and practice presentations.
Tuesday- presentations!
Ecological Footprint Analysis
There are many variables that we will need to take into account to develop an accurate footprint, both before the project and as assessment afterwards. These include:
Lists of compostable materials and uncompostable materials.
How many pounds of food waste are generated at Rastall daily.
How much compostable food accumulated.
Cost (per pound or area) of buying landfill space.
Cost (per pound) of fertilizers purchased over a week or a month
How many pounds of fertilizers are used on flower beds and gardens each week or month.
How many pounds of compost are generated each month through our new system.
How many pounds of waste are saved from sending to landfill.
Success Assessment
Before the composting project is created, we will analyze how much food waste we currently send to landfills. After the project, we will find out how much of the waste is redirected into the composting system and how much compost is generated from this. Over the course of the year we will be able to see the amount of waste into composting increase and the landfill food waste decline. Also, we might be able to incorporate work-studies for students who are interested in helping to compost the waste.
Public Outreach
During the week we will work on creating a website linked to the Colorado College homepage so that everyone will have access to information on the project. Also, we want to create a flier or summary or the workshop to be put on the student digest list server, so that every student, staff member and faculty member will be informed of the workshop on Tuesday.
Financial Impact
To figure out the financial impact we will assess the outputs of costs that can be reduced by generating compost. This includes how much we spend on fertilizers, landfill space (per pound or area), and transporting waste. After the project, we are aiming to remove all fertilizer costs because they will be replaced with compost and reduce the amount of money spend on landfill space.
Systemic Analysis
In this feedback loop we are examining the effects of composting opposed to dumping waste food. In the loop on the right, there is a positive or reinforcing effect. More food means more waste, which means more compost and fertilizer, which helps to produce more healthy plants for food. This is an example of a positive cycle that creates change in a positive way. In the loop on the left, there is a negative or balancing effect. However, it is only negative because when landfill waste increases, it removes the ability to renew resources such as paper, plastics, and compostable foods. This in turn will decrease the amount of food available, because it is not being recycled and the nutrients are concentrated into a landfill.
There are also minor consequences that will accompany a new project such as this. First of all, it is hard to obtain accountability with adults because many aren't eager to work with students on a serious level. Also, we aren't sure what sort of administrative system we need to go through to get finances for composting bins or permission to have a designated site. However, changing the cleaning system at Rastall will be the most difficult because the new system will require more detailed and possibly time-consuming processes, such as separating foods. These may be processes that employees aren't willing to pursue for the sake of creating a positive change. Also, once the project is underway, manual labor will be needed to bring the compost from Rastall to the pile, then maintained over time and finally brought to the groundskeepers to be used in campus flowerbeds and gardens. Hopefully, students living in the Synergy House will be able to incorporate it into their daily lives, or we can create work-studies that will pay students to participate. With every system-changing project there must be underlying consequences, but if we can recognize and prepare for these consequences beforehand they won't be as big of a problem in finalizing our project.