• Looks scary but its an occasional hero breaking down cardboard into soil - sometimes called, “yellow dog vomit’ - its a mould in compost and a very useful helper (that doesn’t smell)
Jagger discovers the big, the small, the weird and the magic of nature on Sydney’s streets while working as an intern with Sustainable House.
I love to see the world and learn more about it through the eyes and hearts of interns and really appreciate their voices on this blog
Michael
• Jagger in front, his fellow intern, Josh at the back, carrying a coolseat tank to Cafe Guilia, Chippendale
By
Jagger Clapsadle, Intern with Sustainable House
Hello! My name is Jagger Clapsadle, and I am an intern from the U.S. sharing my story on what I have learned working with food waste in the community of Chippendale. I have learned so much in my four weeks of interning, and I am excited to share my findings.
One realization I have had simply by working so closely with food (and food waste, more specifically) is that a great many people have a disconnection with the food process, and I was not an exception. Back home in the US I work part time in the food industry. Composting can seem like a complex process, but it doesn’t have to be that way.
This blog explains the composting process, its importance, and the impact it has made in Chippendale and the surrounding areas. I also debunk the myths behind composting citrus and “dog vomit mold” and share my encounters with spiders and the problematic “citrus bin.” Keep reading to learn more!
Let’s start by addressing the main objective: what is composting and how do I get started?
Well, four weeks ago, I was brand new to composting but I have picked up a few things in that time.
Composting is the process of recycling organic matter, such as food scraps and leaves, into a natural fertilizer that is almost but not yet soil.
Compost is extremely nutrient dense and valuable for soil and, in turn, for plant life. Plants have to ‘eat’, too, don’t they?
So many foods can be composted, from banana peels and eggshells to your moldy leftovers to old cardboard beer boxes! Virtually any organic matter can be composted … but steer clear of composting food waste like old meat and dairy as it attracts unwanted pests and will leave a rancid smell unless you add just a bit of it, say, a handful or two.
Compost can be compared to a “slow burning fire”; too much of any one component and it won’t decompose properly. Too wet of a compost bin and the worms and other organisms will drown, too dry and they will suffocate. But the good news is that the guidelines are straightforward: aim for a 1:1 dry to wet ratio. That means for each kg of veggies or “wet scraps” it should be met with 1 kg of dry scraps i.e. newspaper shreds, cardboard, leaves, etc. But do not fear! These aren’t rigid guidelines, and you should be able to eyeball the ratios and be successful.
I have also found that when using cardboard or thick paper it is best to finely shred into smaller scraps so that it is easier to decompose. I’ve learnt this organic material, including fruit and veggie scraps, needs oxygen to decompose. This is why food waste does so much harm in a landfill: it is deprived of the needed oxygen to break down and instead produces methane, a harmful greenhouse gas.
Regularly turning or aerating of the compost is essential, because the food waste needs a flow of oxygen to break down. Not only that but all the other organisms that help the waste to break down need oxygen to survive, including the microbes and microorganisms. I use an auger to turn the 13 compost bins between Myrtle and Shepherd St. and have found it to be very effective, however there are other tools such as a spade or pitchfork that work fine if an auger is not available.
My role in Chippendale’s roadside gardens
As a part of my internship duties, I manage thirteen coolseats and compost bins in Chippendale. It is a highly rewarding part of my job that I look forward to every one of the three week days I’m doing my interning! Not only is it important work to do, but I find it fascinating to see the compost change and break down on a daily basis.
What do I do to help manage these compost bins? That is a great question… There are thirteen compost bins between Myrtle St. and Shepherd St. and they come in various sizes, but they all require the same care, regardless of shape or size.
I begin each day by checking the community rotating compost bin. The rotating bin is great for communities - it is simple for everyone in the area to use and is easy to rotate. It is also crucial to my job as it helps me tell the quantity of scraps that I add to the other bins to be fully broken down. This is essential as it helps me to collect data on how much food waste is being inputted into the bins as a whole. Without accurate data, I cannot help other people to become more sustainable.
• L Rotating 120 litre compost bin R worm farm
Shown above is our rotating compost bin. From it I’ve put 335 kg of food waste to our 12 other bins in the area. Next to it lays a 3-tiered worm farm that slowly composts waste and doesn’t require regular turning
In just three weeks of collecting data from Chippendales green rotating compost bin, I have composted 457 kg of food waste. As a result of these efforts, the community and I have saved 1067 kg of C02 from being put into our precious Earth’s atmosphere. This is one reason why my work is incredibly rewarding! This data was very easy to compile, thanks to the free Xcel calculator I found and downloaded on coolseats.com.au
• This data comes from the coolseats calculator, and shows how much waste has come out of the green rotating bin on Myrtle St… 457 kg is quite a bit in just 3 weeks!
The “citrus compost bin”: a case study
There is a common misconception in the composting world that citrus can’t be composted - it is too acidic, and the worms won’t touch it.
But I learned from first-hand experience that it can be done!
Granted, citrus fruits such as lemons, limes, oranges, etc. won’t compost without the proper maintenance, so there are a few details to keep in mind to ensure healthy compost.
Take, for example, a single Coolseat on Shepherd St. as a case study. This bin is the closest Coolseat to Knox St Bar. The owner, Bjorn, is composting all food waste - citrus, fruit pulp, paper straws, - from his bar and event room, and as a result, a lot of citrus makes its way to this coolseat in particular. I like to refer to this compost bin as “The Citrus Bin”, for obvious reasons.
At first, like most people, I was under the impression that citrus couldn’t be composted and there was no point in having it in the Coolseat. I even found myself discouraged after seeing very little progress in this bin, especially compared to how well the others were faring. Since compost needs healthy levels of wet/dry materials, I knew I had to add paper and regularly aerate the bin if I was going to see any progress. So, I added shredded newspaper to the compost bin every day, and then turned it with the auger. Earlier in the week, I transferred 4 handfulls of mature compost and worms to the citrus bin to kickstart the process. After turning the compost about 6 times over a period of 2 weeks, the “citrus bin” finally started to make a comeback, evidenced by more worms many of which were directly on the citrus.
Curly’s on the Corner: updates
On Friday, the 30th of September, a couple of weeks after I arrived in Australia, the first coolseat to grace the Northern Beaches of Sydney, was officially launched, and the launch party was a great success. Due to collaboration with local compost heroes and cafe customers, Linda Wong and Karen Booth, we had a great turnout from members of the community, as well as Northern Beaches council officers representatives. In attendance was Sue Heins- deputy mayor, and Sean Moran, Liaison officer for Zali Steggal, MP in the Australian federal parliament.
It was inspiring to see local representatives in attendance and it is a great sign of things to come in this area with great people supporting a cafe which is composting. In just a week of the coolseats installation, a few issues had arisen. While the bin had a proper dry to wet ratio, there was only a small worm population and things seem to have started slow. This was likely due to not enough worms put in when we commissioned it and perhaps a lack of oxygen flow in the coolseat. Due to the success I have seen through frequent turning of the compost bins, we prescribed a once a week turning of the coolseat at Curly’s with a compost auger, which helped get the worm population up. Four weeks later the worms dominate the compost and it’s been removed to fertilise nearby fruit trees in the road verge - see this blog about how to achieve hands-free watering of street trees.
• Fuligo septica - ‘dog vomit’ is the bad name it gets - doing good work
On top of that, a weird, bright yellow fungus started to appear in both baskets of the coolseat. Clearly concerned, Karen, who I have been working with extensively, texted me wondering if I had seen anything like it in the bins I maintain, and I immediately recognized it! The yellow fungus in question is referred to as “dog vomit mold”, or Fuligo septica, is quite common in compost, and completely harmless. In fact, this mold can even help to break down food waste for worms and other critters!
With the issues being quickly remedied, we turned to look at the hard data that Karen and Linda have collected at Curly’s, and how the new coolseat can change that. Below are two screenshots of the coolseat calculator using data collected from Curly’s.
• The first four months of data - as slower winter cafe trade kicks in the food waste amount reduces
• The second four months - cafe trade - and food waste - picking up
The calculator currently only allows for weekly data, but note here that the “weeks” in my use of the calculatory actually represent months, with weeks 1-4 representing February-May, and the second calculator showing June-September. In just 8 months, Curly’s cafe had composted over 2,760 kg of food waste… this is spectacular!
To see where other coolseats are located across NSW click here!