| Deliberations are in full swing to compost cafeteria wastes on campus. Initially, given our relative inexperience with composting and the need to build support among cafeteria staff and other participants, we have decided to focus our efforts at the McGregor Memorial Conference Center. Additionally, we will also start with kitchen wastes only (egg shells, coffee grounds, unusable vegetable parts, etc), and not include plate wastes. With greater knowledge, an established partnership among the key actors involved, and systematic engagement of participants, we should be able to scale up to more types of wastes and more locations.
SEED Wayne Student Assistant Will Ahee prepared a report looking at the various options available for composting at Wayne State University. Options included vermicomposting, compost tumblers, and outside bins. For each method he discussed the relative strengths, weaknesses, and costs, and other relevant issues from the perspective of a densely built up campus . Based on this report, SEED Wayne partners from WSU and AVI Foodsystems, Inc. decided to start with two compost tumblers behind McGregor.
An additional advantage of this location--besides its proximity to the kitchen, that is--is that it is about twenty degrees warmer in the winter than the surroundings, thanks to the HVAC tower nearby. This would help the composting process along even in the thick of winter.
Stay tuned! More composting news will be added in coming weeks.
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