By Judith Green • Climate Committee Co-Chair, North Jersey Group ExCom
Since the earliest recorded times, composting has contributed to resource conservation. Early farmers created sustainable communities in large part by feeding organic waste to livestock and, with the remainder, making soil- and crop-enriching compost. With the rise of modern cities, the link between unused organic material (aka uneaten food) and composting has weakened. We need to renew and strengthen that link.
Why is the link important? The path from ancient midden heaps (i.e., waste dumps) to modern landfills has involved the creation of a giant waste industry with serious environmental, economic, and social problems. From collection and transport of solid waste to construction and maintenance of landfills, the industry is costly, polluting, and often socially unjust. Landfills are often sited in overburdened communities. New Jerseyans discard hundreds of tons of waste each day, and food makes up the second largest component of the solid waste stream. In 2017, the New Jersey Legislature set a goal of a 50% reduction of food waste by 2030. Composting will play a key role in achieving that goal.
Food waste contributes significantly to global warming. The United States leads the world every year by wasting a third or more of its food.
Landfills are the repository for most household food waste and that of other large food waste producers. Organic matter is gradually broken down by microorganisms into carbon dioxide (CO2) and water. In the natural environment, this “biogenic” CO2, part of nature’s continuous carbon cycle, does not contribute to global warming. However, in landfills the low oxygen level directs much of the microbial decay of organic matter along an alternate metabolic path that produces methane gas. In 2022, municipal landfills contributed 14% of all human-caused methane release. In the short-term, methane is 80 times more potent than CO2 at trapping the sun’s heat in the atmosphere.
Professional Composting?
It is critically important to compost food waste. Whether in the backyard, via a farm, or through other authorized composting operations, composting diverts tons of solid waste from landfills. Compost is the prize we get, either from the backyard composter, or as a return from a town or commercial composting service. Compost is the nutrient-rich, moisture-retaining material that remains after considerable breakdown of organic matter by microorganisms under managed conditions. A great addition to soil, compost enriches garden soil and reduces or removes the need for artificial fertilizers, saving money and helping pollinator populations as well.
Although convenient, backyard composting is challenging. Commitment, knowledge, time, effort, and money are required to nurture the healthy functioning of the microorganisms that digest organic matter and minimize methane formation. Some important considerations are listed below:
A proper ratio of high carbon waste (brown) to high nitrogen waste (green)
Moisture balance—dry bulking agents may be needed.
Aeration—frequent turning and mixing
Compost bins or enclosures—wood is ideal, though ready-made rotating plastic drums and chambers are available, albeit environmentally unfriendly.
Throwing food waste into a hole or piling it in the yard attracts vermin. Meat and fish scraps are no-nos. Without special equipment, cold weather shuts down most backyard composting.
Professionally managed composting has the benefit of more certain and greater methane reduction. These larger compost piles are often located on farms and regulated by the Department of Agriculture. They are aerated regularly and operate efficiently. Their size and waste content organization produce high internal temperatures (130-160 degrees) that allow waste to break down all year. The heat also prevents weed growth and kills pathogens, making it safe to compost meats, meat bones, and shellfish.
On farms with composting operations, the food scraps collected from municipal customers are fed, as needed, to livestock, reducing the price of composting services. Larger-scale composting does exist and significantly lessens the pressure on cities and states to commit more land and money to enlarge or build new landfills. In New Jersey, the money saved could be budgeted for subsidizing the increased reach and convenience of composting. Ideally, all municipalities—versus the few that do it currently—would have their residents separate unused food for pickup on the same schedule as other recycling.
The NJ Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is focused on solving our solid waste management problem. Recognizing that composting is vital to sustainable activity, the DEP has developed regulations to minimize pollution by large-scale composting operations. Meanwhile, municipalities are beginning to contract with mid-size, farm-based composting businesses to serve their residents. Small composting businesses, though important to the effort, struggle with unnecessarily high permitting fees. Now is the time to contact your municipal environmental commission chair, the DEP, and your NJ state legislators to advocate for greater composting support and access.
Resources
History of Recycling: https://shorturl.at/8IkiO
Landfill Harms: https://shorturl.at/45UKT
Composting and Climate Change: https://shorturl.at/AJaHN
Outdoor Waste Composting: https://shorturl.at/u6K91