Composting is absolutely one of the best things that you can do to help the environment while you are at work. It reduces pollution, and costs less than regular disposal. All businesses that produce organic materials should consider composting because of the benefits it creates.

Composting is easy - just ask the over 200 Tri-State area businesses that currently participate in the program today. Nearly all types of food products are compostable including most paper and types of cardboard. Many businesses find that 50% or more of what they currently consider trash can be composted at much lower prices.

Compostable wastes are then collected by specially designed trucks that eliminate the huge messes that traditional rear-load trash trucks make on our streets. These trucks load from the front, and deposit the waste in a sealed chamber in the back of the truck. These trucks are many times more sanitary and more efficient than rear load trucks.

Waste is deposited on a pad at one of the metro areas composting facilities. Notice the pad is both covered to keep the rain off the already very moist waste, and that the pad it is dumped on is set on a steep slope. The slope allows moisture to run off the waste into a collection system that keeps this “garbage juice” out of our soil. Removing liquid at this step also reduces odors.

The resulting mix is still wet and very heavy, so fibers from ground wood and waxy cardboard are mixed in. These fibers soak up some of the liquid and lighten the mix, allowing it to stay rich in oxygen during decomposition. The mix is then ground in preparation for the next phase.

After the mix is right, the organic material is set in “wind rows” for the actual composting process to occur. Composting is really digestion in that the bacteria that live in these rows actually eat the organic material and the product that results is what we call compost. The temperature inside the rows reaches over 150F, so even in the winter the bacteria are active enough to keep the process moving forward.

After approximately 120 days in the wind rows, the organic material has been completely digested and the resulting compost is ready for processing and sale. First the compost is screened to remove any bones, plastic, metals, or glass that may remain in the material. Then some is bagged and taken directly to nurseries all over the metro area for sale. Other waste is mixed with sand and other soil products and used by landscapers because it makes the perfect bedding for healthy lawns. Most of the compost is purchased by local organic farmers and used to grow the high quality produce found in the area`s top restaurants and markets.

Read more about our composting service to see how Action can help you achieve your environmental goals.