Update on composting

Now it’s time to post a little update on our composting program. Even though it hasn’t been implemented yet, the composting program has been vastly planned and we’ve been thinking through it a lot. So far the first step – deciding where to build the compost and what kind of – the decision has been made. We are going to build the compost piles right next to our Roadhouse garden, against the wall, where they are close to the place the actual compost product is going to be used on – the garden. That is virtually the only possible place we have available in our premises, given all the requirements and practical issues. I will post a picture of the spot once it is possible. There is a bit less space than I originally thought, but after thinking it through we don’t really need more space. Three or four separate piles fits there perfectly and that is all we need, at this point at least. We’ll have to be careful, though, to construct the pile and take care of it correctly, so that it wouldn’t smell too bad – the compost will be rather close to the outside terrace of the Roadhouse restaurant. We decided that we are going to be strict about not throwing any meat or diary to the piles, in order to keep them as “clean” and not-smelly as possible. Compost pile, when taken care of properly, shouldn’t smell, and that is naturally our goal.

So we are going to build the compost places out of brick, which is a material we have and use a lot. That will also look the best, given the brick-made walkways and the wall in the garden, and the overall appearence of everything around here. As explained in the first compost post, the piles shouldn’t be too small or too big – too small won’t heat enough and too big won’t get enough air inside. Something about 1,5m each direction would be ideal. Ours will be about 1,5m high and 1,5m wide but only about 1m long due to the limited space of the spot. They will be dug about 20-30cm underground to make them more efficient and to make the turning of the pile easier. Me and Li Haixin are due to go to the garden tomorrow with our constructer to explain him how to built the brick piles. The most important things are to explain clearly the dimensions and also to make sure that there are going to be wholes between the bricks. If they are built without several air wholes, the compost won’t get air and thus will not work. So there should be left space between some bricks, we have to explain that really carefully to the constructer. Let see how that goes. At the same time, the brick piles should be steady, so there should be a golden middle way found. Anyway, it is absolutely crucial to leave space between bricks, otherwise the piles simple don’t get enough air. The piles should also have some kind of covers, in order to keep the rain and the animals away to some extent and to help to block the odours.

It is not enough to have the place to pile the compost in, you need to actually start separating the compostable waste from the other waste. We are going to buy the bins going to be used for this purpose, as we want them to be black in order to be easily distinguished. We were thinking with our chef how many different bins to collect the compost would be suitable for us, and finally ended up that there should be separated compost-collecting bins as follows:

- Two in the kitchen of The Schoolhouse, one in cold kitchen and one in hot kitchen
- One in the dishwashing room
- One in the cashier (tea bags, coffee grounds and filters)
- Four in The Roadhouse, one in garbage room, one in hot kitchen, one in cold kitchen and one in vegetable room (the most important one).
- One in Xiaolumian kitchen

Also, there should be one big bin behind the art room in The Schoolhouse, where the smaller ones are emptied once full, and which is going to be transported to the Roadhouse compost piles about once a week, depending on how quickly it fills up. That way it is much easier to get the compostable waste to the Roadhouse, instead of transporting separately each small bag. The big bin will be transported preferably with Li Fengquen’s car, where there is an open “pallet” in the back. At the Roadhouse, the big bin will be emptied to the piles and mixed with brown material, e.g. leaves, paper, garden waste, branches, even soil. Then it’s going to be left there waiting for more material. The pile should be turned or mixed about once a week. It should also be watered regularly, but at the same time we must be careful not to overwater it. I was thinking that we should probably also buy some king of organic “compost helper” to make the process faster, but I'm not sure whether that's going to happen. So, anyway, that’s basically how this process is going to work in practice. Hopefully we get it successfully done!

One of the most crucial parts of this process is to educate the staff how to separate correctly the waste. I already made a PowerPoint presentation to our management team about composting, and next we should do something like that in Chinese to the other staff. We should try to explain the reasons why composting is a good thing, probably that way everybody gets motivated, at least a bit, and the separating process is more likely to be successful. However, even more important is just simply to make sure that everyone knows what to put into the compost bins. There will be clear signs above every bin both in Chinese and English telling what to put there. We are going to compost:

- Fruit & vegetable peels, scraps
- Egg shells
- Rice
- Noodles
- Potatoes
- Paper tissues
- Tea bags
- Coffee grounds & filters
- Food scraps that don’t contain meat or dairy, and that are not really oily

In addition, all the garden waste is going to the compost piles as well, and that is crucial as it balances the green material and the brown material. Me and Randhir are going to keep eye on the bins as best as we can and try to assure that uncompostable things are not going to composting bins. I was thinking that we should also collect the paper from the tables to one separate bin, and at the end of the day cut it smaller and add to the compost bins. That’s a good source of brown material, which we need more than the green material (mostly kitchen waste and grass). The compost should be ready, if taken care properly, in 2-4 months – it’s ready when it smells like dark earth and none of it’s ingredients can be identified.

Well, that’s the update on composting available at the moment. Sorry if I was repeating myself (see earlier post), but it’s always good to refresh memory, right?

Have a nice week everyone! And start composting yourselves! 