East Cambridgeshire District Council

Home Composting

At least 30% of the contents of the average household bin could be composted at home.

Composting is the break down of organic material in the presence of oxygen. The process involves hundreds of micro-organisms and creatures like earthworms feeding on the material until it becomes a rich, earthy substance.

Why compost?

• It is a great way of improving your soil fertility for free
• Landfilling of organic waste produces methane (a greenhouse gas) while composting does not
• It is a 'closed-loop' recycling system - you produce the waste, you compost it, you use the product
• Compost is a good alternative to buying peat-based composts, which result in peat bog habitat loss

It's easy to compost at home

Recycle Now offer a range of low-cost compost bins - visit the recycle now website for more information.

What you can home compost

Yes Please!

Greens;

• fruit and veg peelings,
• tea bags and coffee grounds,
• old flowers,
• grass cuttings.

Browns;

• cardboard egg boxes
• newspaper or shredded paper
• bedding from vegetarian pets (straw, hay, newspaper)
• garden prunnings and twigs
• old natural fibre clothing e.g. wool or cotton (but if it is in good condition, donate it to charity!)

No Thanks!

• Meat
• Fish
• Dairy
• Cooked food
• Cat and Dog waste
• Coal ash

Solving composting problems

For composting to work properly, your bin needs both moisture and air. The best way to achieve this is to put in a good mixture of 'greens' which supply the moisture and nitrogen, and 'browns' which aerate the compost and supply carbon.

If you find your compost is wet and sludgy, you may need to add more 'browns' and turn the compost to let air in. If the compost is too dry, you may need to add 'greens' or a little water to the bin.

After a few months, the ingredients you have put in your compost bin should have turned into a dark brown, earthy smelling material at the bottom of the bin, which can be dug out leaving the newer material in the bin. Don't worry if your compost is not fine and crumbly. Even if it is lumpy, sticky or stringy, with bits of twig and eggshell still obvious, it is quite usable.

A more comprehensive list of ingredients and good advice about composting is available on the Garden Organic home composting website, or from Recycle Now.

Master composters

Cambridgeshire has a network of volunteers called master composters, dedicated to:

• raising awareness of the benefits of composting
• encouraging people to home compost
• helping those already composting to do so more effectively
• encouraging the setting up of community composting schemes

If you are interested in speaking to, or becoming a master composter yourself, contact Compost Connexions at Cambridgeshire Community Reuse and Recycling Network (CCORRN) on 01354 742300.

Raising the awareness of compost

Residents in East Cambridgeshire are being given the chance to pick up some free soil improver as part of Compost Awareness Week next week.

The opportunity has been organised by East Cambridgeshire District Council and EARTH with the giveaway taking place at Larkfields Resource Centre, High Barns, Ely on Thursday 10th May from 10am to 3pm.

Any one interested in gardening or learning more about composting is encouraged to come along and collect some of the soil improver to help their gardens bloom or to use on allotments to grow their vegetables grow.

Darren Hughes, Waste Officer at East Cambridgeshire District Council, said: “Compost Awareness Week is always a great opportunity to show the value of recycling. The very best compost is made from garden cuttings, cardboard and food waste that can be diverted from landfill and turned into something to help gardens and allotments grow. We hope lots of people will come down to the event we are holding next week to not only pick up some free soil improver but learn how to make their own.”

Residents are asked to bring along their own bags/sacks to hold the soil improver.