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 Composting is easy to do-
really it is fool-proof. Sure you can make some mistakes
that will create odor or make composting go really slow,
but you will still be composting. You can thank Mother
Nature and the fact that decomposition is a natural process
for that. But our goal is to make composting efficient
and easy for you.
If you would like to go
beyond the basics of composting and perhaps teach others
to compost too, please check out our Master
Mountain Composter program.
There are many ways to compost
but most of those methods can be divided into two groups:
backyard composting and vermicomposting (or composting with
worms). They are very different and many people will
practice both methods because of the different benefits
that each type offers.
WHY
COMPOST
BACKYARD
COMPOSTING
VERMICOMPOSTING
(WORM COMPOSTING)
HIGH COUNTRY COMPOST - COMMERCIAL COMPOST OPERATIONS
COMPOST COLLECTION IN SUMMIT SCHOOLS
NEW!
JOIN THE SUMMIT PLANT EXCHANGE
WORMS
IN THE CLASSROOM
COMPOST
BINS & SUPPLIES
Why Compost?
- It reduces the amount of waste headed
to our landfills
- It creates a highly fertile growing
medium for FREE
- Amending soil with compost reduces:
erosion, soil compaction, cracking & splattering,
and the need for water.
- Weed seeds and fly larvae are killed
through the composting process.
Most landfills are designed to NOT breakdown organic
waste. Many people mistakenly believe that the landfill
is a giant composting system. In reality, all of your
leftovers, yard clippings, and organic wastes that go
into the garbage do not turn into high-nutrient soil in
the landfill. Organic substances need adequate oxygen,
sunlight, and beneficial microorganisms to recycle naturally
into compost. Landfill conditions foster an anaerobic
(oxygen-depleted) environment where decomposition of food
and other waste produces methane, a
greenhouse gas 72 times more potent than carbon dioxide.
This is the newest information that blows away the past
reports of methane being 23 times more potent than carbon
dioxide. This hazardous output makes landfills the largest
human-related source of methane emissions (34%) in the
United States. From a climate-change perspective, composting (backyard and commercial collection) is beneficial because it inhibits methane production. How? In a compost pile, oxygen-dependent bacteria break down the organic material, leaving water and carbon - not methane.
Stop
Trashing the Climate (Executive Summary June 08) found
the following:
“Landfills are the largest source of anthropogenic
methane emissions in the U.S., and the impact of landfill
emissions in the short term is grossly underestimated
— methane is 72 times more potent than CO2 over
a 20-year time frame. National data on landfill greenhouse
gas emissions are based on international accounting protocols
that use a 100-year time frame for calculating methane’s
global warming potential. Because methane only stays in
the atmosphere for around 12 years, its impacts are far
greater in the short term. Over a 100-year time frame,
methane is
25 times more potent than CO2. However, methane is 72
times more potent than CO2 over 20 years.”
"Stop
Trashing the Climate," cover and lead story in BioCycle
magazine, August 2008 reported:
“Leading scientists now agree that atmospheric GHG
(Greenhouse Gas) concentrations must decline over the
next 15 years in order to avoid rapid and widespread climate
change. Unfortunately, widely used tools to measure greenhouse
gases evaluate the effects of the gases over 100 year…
But on a 20-year time horizon (reflecting the need for
significant reduction over the next 15 years as just noted),
this global warming potential jumps to 72 times that of
CO2. What does this mean? It means, for instance, that
the impact of methane emissions from landfills in the
short term are almost three times higher than reported.
And it point to the need to target methane now.”
As you can see, there is a link between waste and climate
change. Because greenhouse gases are largely responsible
for climate change (or global warming), reducing the amount
of organic waste going to the landfill also combats climate
change. Compost has the remarkable power to absorb carbon
emissions. Currently, around a quarter of the world’s
carbon emissions are absorbed by the earth’s soil.
However, climate change is damaging the soil’s ability
to absorb carbon emissions. It seems to be a Catch 22!
Compost is the answer. Compost provides an ideal environment
for methanotrophic bacteria (bacteria that use methane
as carbon and energy). The EPA found that a blanket of
compost on a landfill can help reduce methane emissions
by as much as 100 percent! Compost can also be used to
enhance the nutrients in existing soil and therefore,
improve soil damaged by climate change.
Download
GrassRoots Recycling Networks handout on "Burying Organics
Stinks: The Compost Solution"
|| Backyard
Composting
Download
the Basics to Backyard Composting Fact Sheet
Download
a Comparison of Backyard Composting Bins
Download
a Composting in Bear Country Fact Sheet
Composting is possible
in a high altitude, cold weather climate!
It may take a little longer,
but not much. A compost pile that freezes will begin
composting again upon thawing and typically will decompose
quickly, as the cells have been broken by ice crystals,
giving it a jump start on decomposition.
If you would rather keep
the pile active all winter, you can prevent freezing by:
- Insulate the sides of the bin with
straw bales or foam board
- Add a lid of plywood to keep the
snow off of the pile
- Stir it often during the cold months
(this will keep it hot)
- Add "hot" wastes, such
as: horse manure, fruit pulp (free at juice bars),
lobster/crab shells, and seaweed.
|| Vermicomposting
(or worm composting)
Download
a Vermicomposting Fact Sheet
Download
a Build Your Own Worm Bin Fact Sheet
Why compost with
worms? Here are some benefits:
- Worm composting is faster than backyard
composting - worms produce compost every day!
- You can compost year-round with worms... no more frozen
compost bins
- Some consider worm castings (another
name for the compost they create) to be even more fertile
than typical backyard compost
- Worm bins can be kept in very small
spaces indoors, so people without yards can do it...
it is great for apartment/condo dwellers and classrooms!
- Compost tea (the liquid produced
during the process) is easy to harvest from most worm
bins and can be used on houseplants (or any other plants)
as a liquid fertilizer
- Kids love it!
- They are the easiest pets to care
for! You can go on vacation for 2 weeks without
getting a "worm sitter!"
- There is less maintenance involved
- no mixing needed!
 Not
just any worm can do the job!! Although most species
of worms will break down organics to some degree, red wigglers
(a.k.a. red worms or Eisenia fetida) are the best
for processing large amounts of organics quickly.
They also reproduce quickly and are tough enough to survive
minor temperature fluctuations.
Nightcrawlers are earthworkers,
meaning that they work deep underground on soil and are
not too interested in organics.
Contact the Conservation
Center to learn how to start your own bin. We also sell
red wigglers (see above)!
We host vermi workshops
a couple of times a year. Please visit our events
and workshops page to find out the date of our next
worm workshop!
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|| High Country Compost - Commercial Compost Operations
More coming soon...
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|| Compost Collection in Summit Schools
Download an Info Sheet about the School Compost Program
Download a list of Acceptable Compostable Items
Acceptable Compostable Items in Spanish
Download a Short Video of Summit Cove Composting
 Vail Resorts ECHO Supports Compost Collection and Education in Summit Schools
Thanks to a generous grant from Vail Resorts ECHO, Summit Cove and Upper Blue Elementary launched cafeteria composting and waste-free lunch initiatives in October and December 2009. The $3,000 grant from Vail Resorts ECHO will allow all six elementary schools to compost lunchroom food scraps by the end of the 2009-2010 school year. The funds will also provide local schools with new compost, recycling, and trash bins for the cafeteria as well as signage and educational materials for students, teachers, and parents.
Vail Resorts ECHO, the Company’s social responsibility and environmental stewardship program, enables Vail Resorts to preserve and care for communities and Colorado’s spectacular natural environment. Vail Resorts ECHO was instantly connected to the school composting project due to the current composting efforts at Keystone and Breckenridge Resorts. Keystone Resort has composted 37 tons of waste from the Conference Center and Keystone Lodge from January through November 2009. Nearly 5 tons of material has been composted from the Village at Breckenridge and Great Divide Lodge since food collection started in early September 2009.
 The school compost collection program is a joint effort of Summit County Recycling, High Country Compost, and the High Country Conservation Center. Summit County Recycling will collect compost in addition to recycling from Summit schools. Lunch waste will then travel to Summit County’s large scale compost facility, High Country Compost, located at the Summit County Landfill where it will be transformed into dark rich soil in a matter of weeks.
HC3 has worked with teachers and Green Teams over the last couple of years to bring the concept of composting into the classroom. Through funds from Vail Resorts ECHO grant program, the Conservation Center will further compost education by teaching students about what is compostable; why we should compost in the first place; and how much garbage is reduced through composting efforts. Classrooms will also be invited to take a fieldtrip to the compost facility at the landfill to view the end-product of their cafeteria waste.
The compost collection program is designed to make garbage sorting easy for students. The collection bins will be color coded with compost in a large green bin, trash (plastic wrappers, bags, and forks) in a small gray bin, and recycling in a skinny blue bin. With a universal collection system in place for all schools, the program aims for composting to become school policy and student habit along with everyday tasks like lining up for recess. And because the trash bin is less than half the size of the compost and recycling bins, students learn that composting really does decrease the amount of waste destined for the landfill.
So far, Summit Cove has collected around 1,063 pounds of food and paper waste for the compost  program which started in October. As a whole, the program has the potential to divert up to 75 percent of the school waste stream (district-wide) from the landfill while providing schools with incentives to decrease their trash bill. With an average of 15 percent diverted through recycling efforts, most zero waste communities are achieving 90 percent diversion rates. The final 10 percent is a mix of oddball plastics like plastic packaging and films.
The compost collection program also encourages students and parents to aim for a waste-free lunch. Even with recycling and composting efforts in place in the lunchroom, kids are still bringing sandwiches wrapped in plastic packaging, unrecyclable juice boxes, chip bags, and disposable plastic forks. These items are unfortunately destined for our landfills. Parents can minimize food and packaging waste by packing a waste-free lunch using reusable, recyclable, and compostable materials. Click here to learn more about waste-free lunches.
Check it out! Summit Cove Elementary was featured in the on-line magazine Education World for their composting efforts. Click here to read all about it.
Summit Compost Program Bin Signs:
 
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|| Join
the Summit Plant Exchange Group
.jpg) Find a Home for your Unwanted Plants, Poops (Horse, Chicken, Rabbit, Llama...), and Pots...
Calling
all Summit County victory gardeners, greenhorns, greenhouse
goers, backyard and worm composters, high-altitude farmers,
and green thumb wannabes. Do you have an excess of animal
manure, plant pots, wood shavings, seeds or seedlings that
you can't find a home for? Or are you looking for any of
the above? This is a free exchange for dirt lovers and worm
huggers alike! The Summit County Plants, Poops, and Pots
Exchange is a place where you can post free items for the
garden and greenhouse. The offer of garden tools, garden
books, plants, soil, lights, sheds, seeds... are all welcome!
This is a FREE exchange similar to Summit
Freecycle but specific for gardening and composting.
Click here
to check out the new group and join us in making the landfill
a little less crowded and our gardens a little more full.
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High Country Conservation
Center’s Worms in the Classroom program's 2009-2010
season is in full swing. Last season we brought worms into
elementary schools, Montessori classrooms, and 4-H groups.
Worms have a magical power to draw students
in while teaching them about nature and the environment,
waste and recycling, science and decomposition, math, creative
writing… and more. There are many ways to incorporate
the worms into teacher's lesson plans. We are happy to provide
you with sample lesson plans ranging from preschool to high
school.
Through Worms in the Classroom, the Conservation
Center’s staff will visit classrooms
with a worm bin and composting materials. Classroom visits
range from 30 minutes to an hour and include a short presentation
about red worms and composting. Students will also have
the opportunity to learn about red worm biology and explore
compost piles. It is a hands-on experience fun for all ages!
Worms in the Classroom is also working to
provide classrooms with permanent classroom worm bins. Through
our sponsorship program, Summit County locals and businesses
can sponsor a worm bin in a Summit County classroom. If
you have parents or partners that may be interested in the
Worms in the Classroom sponsorship program, let us know!
Sponsorship is only $50 and will provide a classroom with
worms, a bin, educational materials, and a mini-workshop
on how to take care of your worms.
We are currently scheduling classrooms to
participate in Worms in the Classroom. Teachers, if you
are interested in having the Conservation Center bring worms
to your classroom or want your own classroom worm bin, contact
jen@highcountryconservation.org
for more information or call 668-5703. Sponsors may also download
the sponsorship letter and application.
Join the new Worms
in the Classroom Google Group to stay in the
loop about classroom worm composting and to download classroom
materials.
Download
the WIC Sponsorship Letter and
Application
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Find the bin that fits your
needs at a great price! Click
here for composting information and workshops.
You can also email jen@highcountryconservation.org
with your composting questions.
The Conservation Center
sells compost bins, thermometers, kitchen crocks, aerators
and additional composting supplies at Eartha's Green Shop. All proceeds go to support HC3's
waste reduction and resource conservation programs so you
can feel good that your money is making a difference! Eartha's
Green Shop is located at the High Country Conservation Center's office at 518 E. Main Street
in Frisco. The store is open Monday through Friday, 10:00am
to 5:00pm.
Support local
and buy your compost supplies from Eartha's
Green Shop!
Here are just a
few composting supplies that you can find at Eartha's Green
Shop:
 Odorless
Compost Crock
No one will guess this handsome crock is collecting food
scraps for composting, so you can keep it right on the kitchen
counter. An activated charcoal filter in the lid traps odors,
and it’s dishwasher-safe, too. Made of glazed ceramic,
the crock comes with 2 filters that last up to two months
each. $35 each (tax not included).
Ceramic stoneware with two-toned green and tan color
9-1/4" H
One-gallon capacity
 Compost
Thermometer
This thermometer tells you when compost
is "cooked!" By monitoring the temperature of
your compost, you'll know exactly when to turn it, and when
your compost is ready to use on your garden and flowerbeds.
$25 each (tax not included).
Stainless-steel with a
waterproof sealed dial that won't fog
20" long with 1-3/4" dial
 NEW
Worm Compost "Tea" Bag Kits
Worm compost is a balanced, nutrient-rich amendment for
your garden. You can feed the compost to your garden soil,
your potted house plants, and trees. Worm compost is the
best soil amendment known to man (and worm). Your plants
will thank you for it. Simply sprinkle a handful of compost
around the base of your plant and lightly mix. You may also
create compost “tea” by steeping the compost
in a watering can overnight. The “tea” can be
used as a liquid fertilizer.
Small box of worm compost $9 each (tax
not included).
.
 The
Worm Factory
The Worm Factory’s unique stackable, multi-tray design
makes it the most efficient composter around. Worms begin
eating waste in the lowest tray, and then migrate upward
as food sources in that tray are exhausted. By allowing
worms to migrate upward, the worms separate themselves from
the finished compost that is ready for the garden. As waste
is broken down, moisture filters through your composter,
dragging nutrient-rich particles with it. This liquid fertilizer,
know as "worm tea" is gathered in the special
collection tray of the Worm Factory and can easily drained
from the spigot.
3 Tray System $70 (red, green, or black)
plus tax.
Additional Trays $15 each (tax not
included).
 The
Compost Tumbler
A smart design and high-quality materials make this new
compost tumbler super effective and easy to use. Just fill
it up with garden refuse, slide the door closed and give
it a turn every couple days. The built-in hand-holds provide
easy leverage; a stabilizing inner crossbar helps breaks
up compost during turning; black color absorbs heat. $170
each (tax not
included).
Rodent-proof design
100% recycled black polypropylene
with a steel frame
Holds 6-1/2 cubic feet
(42 dry gallons)
31" L x 23" D
x 36" H overall
Compost Worms - Red
Wrigglers
 Start
your own red wriggler bin with this starter population of
compost worms. You can convert food scraps into nutrient-packed
compost with these red wriggler worms. They're fast, efficient
and odorless! Worms will digest chopped kitchen waste, leaving
rich casting behind. You can even feed them your used paper
napkins, paper towels, newspaper, paperboard, and blue jeans!
$38 (tax not included) for a starter batch.
• Starter population
multiplies to a peak population of 8,000 in a few months
• Each batch is around 1 to 1 1/4 pounds of worms
(1,000 to 1,300 worms) in various stages of growth
• Scientific name of the worms is Eisenia foetida
 Compost
Books and Worm Readings...
We now have an assortment of compost books available in
Eartha's Green Shop. For the compost artist, learn to design
your dream compost system to attract healthy microorganisms
and worms. For the scientist, understand true carbon/nitrogen
ratios, how the process really works, and how to get it
hot even in the high country!
The Rodale Books
of Composting - Easy Methods for every Gardener
Organic Gardening - The Natural No-Dig Way by Charles Dowding
The Worm Book
- The Complete Guide to Gardening and Composting with Worms
by Loren Nancarrow and Janet Hogan Taylor
Worms Eat My
Garbage by Mary Appelhof
Let it Rot!
The Gardener's Guide to Composting
The Complete
Compost Gardening Guide by Barbara Pleasant and Deborah
Martin
The Master Mountain
Composter Program -2009 Guide (limited number available)
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