ORGANICS MANAGEMENTCommunity POWER Toolkit

Round 13

WHY RECYCLE ORGANICS?

1. Garbage = 25% food & food soiled paper2. Keeps food out of landfills3. Composting organics creates an amazing soil amendment

WAYS TO HANDLE ORGANICS

Food-to-people (food recovery) Food-to-hogs Backyard composting Vermicomposting (worms!) Curbside collection of organics Drop-off sites

PARTNERS Compost/organics recycling sites/companies

www.rethinkrecycling.com, search “Food waste” Schools

Compost sales Organics in the lunch room

Community Community Gardens Neighborhood associations

Food shelves Events

ACTIVITIES IN TOOLKIT Recognize the problem!

Audience: adults, students Separate food waste for one week How much food waste do you have?

(Food waste / total waste) x 100 = % food waste Edible Compost Pile

Audience: youth Edible treats represent types of food waste

Ex. Oreo crumbles represent coffee grounds

ACTIVITIES IN TOOLKIT

Backyard Composting Audience: adults, students Start composting with an indoor or outdoor bin Experiment with different materials, mixing Test compost and potting soil mixtures with seeds

EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES RethinkRecycling.com Residents Educators

EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES www.swmcb.org/tool-kits Images Articles Templates

EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES

UofM Extention Build a bin How-to’s Troubleshooting Ask a gardener

PRINT EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES

Minnesota Pollution Control AgencyHow to Compost WasteDiagnosing Common Backyard Composting ProblemsCompost Your Food Scraps IndoorsHow to Grow a Healthy, No-waste Lawn and GardenReduce the Need for Pesticides and Herbicides

County resources