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Research Question: How can community composting programs in Grand Rapids help the environment and strengthen local communities?
Wasted food is responsible for 58% of landfill methane emissions, which scientists estimate to account for 20-10% of climate warming (“Food: Material - Specific,” 2020)
WHAT is composting and why is it important:
WHAT is composting and why is it important:
Composting is a process that uses microorganisms, fungi and insects to naturally break down organic materials such as yard waste and food scraps, creating a nutrient rich soil. Without composting, food waste and organic materials are thrown into landfills. In landfills, methane emissions are produced due to the lack of oxygen to properly break down the material. If composted, the same material responsible for producing large amounts of methane can be used to create nutrient-rich soils and benefit the community.
Literature Review:
Economic Benefits
Economic Benefits
Composting can relieve cost burdens by cutting the number of trash services, space needed for landfills and cost to build the new landfills. Additionally, the fertilizer created by compost can help the city make money by selling the soil, while also allowing farmers to have access to healthy soil at a lower cost.
Chicago has found that their decentralized composting system resulted in a cost avoidance of roughly $2.7 million from diverting organic waste away from landfills (Pai et al., 2019).
Social Impact
Social Impact
Typically, less than 5% of organic matter is composted around the United State! Composting diverts the organic materials to decline greenhouse gas emission. When we compost, the experience allows for greater appreciation of resources and emphasizes reciprocity.
A case study that ran for a total of 5 years, found great progress in their community composting site. They were able to prevent 144,000 pounds of greenhouse gases and divert over 210,000 pounds of food scraps from landfills (Bombar, 2024)
ENVIRONMENTAL Benefits
ENVIRONMENTAL Benefits
Community compost sites create engagement, grow knowledge, and foster a sense of accomplishment and responsibility for the waste. Composting can also utilize the nutrient-rich soil to help imrpove food production, and address food insecurity. Overall, composting helps with environmental equity, creating a space for learning and growth.
Community composting can connect with the community, creating volunteer opportunities, internships, and jobs (Bombar, 2024).
Implementing + Ways to Start:
Local Efforts: Wormies
Local Efforts: Wormies
Wormies is an organization local to Grand Rapids, beginning to show some possibilities in community composting. They have organized a pick-up service at $8 per pickup, that can be weekly or biweekly (“West Michigan Composting”, 2023).
-Learn more about them: www.thewormies.com/
Pickup-Dropoff-Donate
Pickup-Dropoff-Donate
Curbside pickup is similar to landfill and recycling, implementing a third bin, dedicated to organic materials. A centralized drop-off would be a larger area such as a landfill or recycling site, but rather for compostable materials. Finally, within urban areas, there are often farm stands/markets where drop offs are often organized and appreciated.
-You can also drop off compost to Earthly Refillery, a local zero waste store (410 Ethel Ave SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49506)
Start At Home!
Start At Home!
Starting compost at home may seem intimating but can actually be very simple to start! You can buy a compost bin or reuse an old bin by adding holes for air, or even just start a composting pile on the ground! Through a mix of water, oxygen, carbon rich materials, and nitrogen rich materials, you can make your own black gold in a roughly 3-6 months.
-Here is a good source with an easy step-by-step for beginners! www.epa.gov/recycle/composting-home
Methods:
Case Study: The case study would focusing on educating the community to build stronger community while also helping the environment.
To do the case study, would start with surveys and interviews to a variety of demographics. The surveys and interviews would be used to get a better understanding of current knowledge on composting and Grand Rapid's public opinion.
I would find some key contributors to composting in Grand Rapids such as Wormies and Earthly Refillery to educate the community about.
Since social media is often the primary way people get information now, I would create an account promoting the composting in Grand Rapids with important educational information. The account could have fun facts, volunteer opportunities, education event etc.
Using friends, family, and colleagues, spreading the account would begin to get people together where then the word of mouth can come in and continue to get participants
Using waste audits and a count of participants at each location, I can start to collect data of the growth in composting.
I would finish the case study going back into surveys and interviews to see how public opinion has changed.
This case study would be used to see how particpant numbers increase while also being able to look at the enviornmetal impact through waste audits, noting how much waste was diverted from landfills. The case study is a good way to dive into the researchquestion since it looks at the real world impacts. It is specific to the Grand Rapids area and uses the resources already there. Additionally, there are mixed methods with both quanitiative and qualitative data to capture communtiy perspective and enviornmental impacts. The case study can also be used as a stepping stone into new case studies. Researchers can then look into what is the most effective way of gaining participants, what type of composting is used the most within the community, etc.
Constructs:
Community Engagment
Community Engagment
Evaluated through surveys and interview
Measure the number of participants over time
Purpose: dive into public opinion, knowledge, and participation
Environemtal Impacts
Environemtal Impacts
Measue diversion rates of organic waste
Measure the amount of use the compost gets
Measure the overall quality of the compost
Purpose: look at how effective and useful the compositng is within the community
Theoretical Framework:
Triple bottom line theory highlights all the aspects of community composting. People indicate social sustainability, making sure to have a positive social impact, and encouraging engagement and education. Planet targets the environmental sustainability aspect, primarily looking at how to reduce environmental footprints. This can include anything from reducing waste and gas emissions to improving biodiversity. Finally, profit focuses on keeping sustainability economically viable, ensuring that profit does not get cut at the expense of being sustainable. The three pillars all relate and benefit one another as a whole, and combine the essential points of community composting.
References
References
Aber, S. (2024, October 25). Reducing landfill waste through community composting initiatives: EREF. Environmental Research & Education Foundation. https://erefdn.org/reducing-landfill-waste-through-community-composting-initiatives/
Beattie, A. (2014). Cost-benefit analysis of food-waste composting program at umm. Scholarly Horizons: University of Minnesota, Morris Undergraduate Journal, 1(1). https://doi.org/10.61366/2576-2176.1000
Bombar, J. (2024, February 1). Case study: Food cycle community compost program. Solana Center. https://solanacenter.org/2024/01/04/case-study-food-cycle-community-compost-program/
Brown, S., Butman, D., & Kurtz, K. (2023, July 26). Steps to circularity: Impact of resource recovery and urban agriculture in Seattle and Tacoma, Washington. Journal of Environmental Management. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0301479723014366
De Boni, A., Melucci, F. M., Acciani, C., & Roma, R. (2022, August 11). Community composting: A multidisciplinary evaluation of an inclusive, participative, and eco-friendly approach to Biowaste Management. Cleaner Environmental Systems. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S266678942200023X
Environmental Protection Agency. (2020). Food: Material-Specific Data. EPA. https://www.epa.gov/facts-and-figures-about-materials-waste-and-recycling/food-material-specific-data
Hall, S. M., Tikku, V., & Heiger-Bernays, W. J. (2023, November 15). Potential policy and community implications of equitable organic waste, compost, and urban agricultural systems in the United States. Environmental health perspectives. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10648754/
Howard, B. C. (2013, June 18). How cities Compost Mountains of food waste. How Cities Compost Mountains of Food Waste. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/culture/article/130618-food-waste-composting-nyc-san-francisco
Morrow, O., & Davies, A. (2021, December 9). Creating careful circularities: Community Composting in new ... Creating careful circularities: Community composting in New York City. https://rgs-ibg.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/tran.12523
Pai, S., Ai, N., & Zheng, J. (2019, June 26). Decentralized community composting feasibility analysis for residential food waste: A chicago case study. Decentralized community composting feasibility analysis for residential food waste: A Chicago case study. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2210670719305281
Platt, B. (2020, December 8). Lessons in community composting: State of community composting in the U.S. BioCycle. https://www.biocycle.net/lessons-in-community-composting-state-of-community-composting-in-the-u-s/
Slater, R., & Aiken, M. (2014, February 6). Can’t You Count? Public Service Delivery and Standardized Measurement Challenges - The Case of Community Composting. Taylor & Francis Online: Peer-reviewed journals. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14719037.2016.1177109
“West Michigan Composting King Turns ‘worm Poop’ into Black Gold.” SOM - State of Michigan, 26 Apr. 2023, www.michigan.gov/egle/newsroom/mi-environment/2023/04/26/west-michigan-composting-king-turns-worm-poop-into-black-gold.
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