• The Auburn Girls High School Compost Trial Report compares six different compost designs
The public Auburn Girls High School in NSW has completed a trial comparing six different compost designs. Funded by NSW Education the trial was supported by the local MP Lynda Voltz who launched the draft report at the compost trial garden. The report was compiled in a consultative process involving students, teachers and the School Librarian, Linda Park (Ms Park obtained the grant and managed the project) as the authors.
Carried out over 9 months the trial compared designs for worm farm, rotating bins and options suitable for schools, units, houses and offices. This project was possible with funding from the Sustainable Schools Grant program, through Schools Infrastructure NSW and the Department of Education.
Food waste from the school canteen, teachers and students was weighed, noted, and put into the compost bins to enable comparisons to be made about user experience such as, ease of use, rate of compost, maintenance requirements.
• Auburn state member of parliament, Lynda Voltz, launched the draft consultation report at the new school compost garden
Data and analysis of the different composting options helped the school participants to obtain facts which prompted the report authors to look beyond the school’s direct experience and to offer recommendations for schools across NSW and other states. The report found that:
“This trial results show it is possible for Australia’s public schools to save costs by reducing or ending food waste, which, in turn, reduces waste pickup fees. Extrapolating the results in general and rough terms, the range of cost savings across NSW public schools it is estimated by our calculations to be about $4 million dollars a year, assuming that there are about 795,485 students in NSW public schools, and 840 at Auburn Girl’s High School.
Since most public schools are underfunded, by finding financial savings within current school budgets through diverting food waste from general waste, schools may by their own initiatives divert monies saved from waste bills to other school running costs such as for teacher salaries, school assets, school property maintenance, and other presently un-met needs.”
Some key recommendations are:
1. Every NSW school, including Auburn Girls High School, could this year increase the
amount of food waste directed to the new or existing compost options with the goals of:
a. Ending food waste from the school;
b. Incorporating composting and related data into the maths, science, TAS and other
curricula as is now being done increasingly across the NSW public school system;
c. Reducing the school’s climate pollution;
d. Reducing the school’s waste collection costs and freeing up those funding
demands for re-deployment elsewhere in the schools’ operating budgets;
e. Saving NSW public schools over $4 million each year.
And,
Auburn Girls High School and all NSW schools could in Term 2 collect and integrate the data from compost activities into TAS, Maths, Social Sciences, Science and other curricula content in the school
And,
The Department of Education could this current school term let all NSW schools know that schools finding financial savings within current school budgets through diverting food waste from general waste may, by their own initiatives, divert monies saved from waste bills to other school running costs such as for teacher salaries, school assets, school property maintenance, and other presently un-met needs.
In a speech in the NSW Parliament praising the school the local MP Lynda Voltz said,
“Ms LYNDA VOLTZ (Auburn) (18:35): The girls at Auburn Girls High School have again shown their versatility and spirit with the setting up of the Compost Club. The group includes 26 student participants, with several teachers and staff involved, including Sama Rahmati and Salha Maryam Mohamed Ilham, whom I was honoured to have show me around their wonderful gardens and compost facilities. It is always a pleasure to visit Auburn Girls High School, and it was great to be there to help launch their draft report on the impacts of the Compost Club. The Compost Club project took place in 2023 and 2024. The purpose was to measure and compare the efficiency and ease of use of six compost design types. The goal was to reduce and ultimately end food waste and associated waste costs at the school, preferably by the end of 2024.
The benefits of the project include savings on waste pick-up costs, benefits to children’s mental and physical health, increased environment health and an enhanced academic experience. Growing food also encourages students to eat more vegetables, and gardening can lower students’ cortisol levels and reduce stress, which helps improve their academic performance. More plants and trees, and an increase in growth and canopy rates on the school campus, can increase air quality, cool the school and reduce air-conditioning costs. The project also provided a valuable practical lesson on heat islands through practical examples such as measuring the heat of a road with a tree canopy shade against those without. For the information of the House, it was 26 degrees on a road with shade and 37 degrees on a road without—a difference of over 10 degrees.”.
The speech is here.
For enquiries and copies of the report - contact the school librarian, Ms Linda Park
- e Linda.Park3@det.nsw.edu.au t (02) 9649 6949 ext 111
Terrific to see the Librarian, teachers and students at Auburn Girls High School conducting such research and publishing the results for other schools and the wider community to have.
Michael Mobbs