Get Green: Compost!

Dirt. Most people take it for granted, but in reality our soil is the basis for much of the life on this planet. Healthy soil is not only filled with nutrients that plant life depend on, but it's actually filled with living organic matter called humus (not to be confused with hummus, a tasty chickpeas dip). In a healthy life cycle, plants take in nutrients from the soil which are then returned when the plant either dies and decays or as its leaves, fruit and flowers are discarded and decompose.

Hence, in its most basic essence, composting is the act of giving back to the earth and creating healthy soil. Healthy soil means healthy plants that are naturally strong and require fewer inputs like pesticides and other harmful chemicals (this is the idea behind organic farming).

So now that we understand what happens in a healthy life cycle where composting occurs, let's look at what happens when you remove composting from the process both in an agricultural setting and in a residential one.

Traditionally, in agricultural settings composting went hand in hand with farming. It was a farmer's means of feeding their plants and keeping their soil healthy. However, after World War II the US experienced a boom in the use of synthetic fertilizers. Suddenly compost was out of the picture as synthetics were marketed as a "superior" means of boosting plant growth based almost entirely on three nutrients: N (nitrogen) P (phosphorous) K (potassium). In reality, healthy soil contains many nutrients resulting from complex interactions between millions of bacteria and microorganisms. Little did they know, but the transformation of US agricultural practices would prove destructive to soil health,
creating a vicious cycle of dependency on synthetic fertilizers and insecticides as well as the need to buy topsoil imported from other regions (whose own soil health is then destroyed in the process). According to John Jeavon's book on Biointensive growing methods, current agriculture practices destroy approximately 6 pounds of soil for each pound of food produced and US croplands are loosing topsoil about 18 times faster than the soil formation rate!

Composting in a residential setting is just as important. Naturally, organic matter breaks down with exposure to sunlight and oxygen. Unfortunately, the way that we dispose of our compostable waste is by enclosing it in a plastic bag and tightly compacting it in a landfill. Without exposure to oxygen, our kitchen scraps, raked leaves and grass clippings ferment creating methane, a greenhouse gas 21 times stronger than carbon dioxide. Landfills are the third largest arthropogenic (human-induced)source of methane and the US has one of the highest emissions globally.


Many people are under the misconception that composting is complicated, eccentric, impossible (or unnecessary) to do in an urban environment or that it just plain stinks.

I strongly believe that composting is for everyone. Honestly, I find it almost... magical. Afterall, you're taking literal garbage that has no use whatsoever in society and transforming it into the richest, blackest bit of earth you have ever seen. Mature compost is not only beautiful to look at but it has a really pleasant odor that I can only describe as earthy. Asides from the environmental benefits that you create and the global warming contribution that you avoid, I find composting to be one of the most basic ways to get in touch with nature and your food supply.

There are many different methods of composting ranging from scientific proportions calculated to yield certain proportions of nutrients to lazy man methods where you make a heap of kitchen scraps and leave it, so I suggest that you read more on how to's, but the basic idea is that you combine green matter (kitchen scraps (including eggshells and coffee grinds but discluding meat scraps, shellfish and other items that might attract wildlife), green landscaping waste)and brown matter (dried leaves, sticks, grass). You can add in items as they become available or you can gather your materials separately and then construct a layered lasagna-type pile. Some people say to stir it, others say to leave it and there's rationale to both methods. You can compost in an open area, in a DIY box or you can buy a compost container. Compost containers can be quite small and help quelch fears of odor. City residents can easily compost using small containers and some cities, like New York City, offer its residents discounted bins. Lastly, if you ever go to a farmer's market (and you should!), there are plenty of farmer's willing to take in extra scraps. In New York City, some farmer's markets, including Union Square, have bins for scrap collection. Conversely, there are many places to get good compost materials including your local Starbucks- rumor has it, they will gladly hold coffee grinds for interested composters.