Closing the Loop waste management tips for the conscious you!!
How many of us give due consideration to the usefulness of leftover food, vegetables, and fruit peels before chucking them straight into the dustbins? According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), food scraps and garden waste combined make up a whopping twenty-eight per cent of what we throw away, which if used for composting can not only lead to reduced traffic in landfills but also contribute to soil nourishment and healthier blooms and fruits. Composting as an effective waste management treatment is a great way to use the organic waste we generate at home.
Hamsa Iyer is a Waste Management Advocate and General Manager at ProEarth Ecosystems based in Pune, whose overarching efforts to adopt composting in her personal life and also sensitise people about the usefulness of this concept showcase her commitment to environmental protection. In an interview with MOSAIC, she tells us that she has been passionate about good environmental practices, and sustainability since she was a teen. Her inclination for nature led her to join ProEarth, a waste management company that helps households and industries manage waste.
Hamsa tells us that composting is a great way to address waste. She tells us that the practice of composting is like making good sambhar, it is only by consistent practice that one gets the knack of it. She elucidates that creating awareness among people and educating them on the benefits of composting is an initiative, that can do wonders at the household level in living sustainably and consciously around waste production and management. Further, when asked how the process of composting can be made simple and fun, Hamsa highlights that engaging in activities like making one’s DIY compost bin, gardening, and composting in the same spot are some of the ways by which the idea can be made fun and interesting. In addition, she says “community composting is one wonderful initiative where people can collectively learn, take note of individual failures or wins, understand the significance of collective responsibility, and take common actions.” Hamsa also all members of a household to take to composting and when one understands the process of composting, one has already addressed the problem of waste. Then the family becomes mindful of what they purchase, how they consume it, and how they recycle or repurpose it so one item is ensured a circular route.
Composting is a sustainable household’s real motivator with many incentives. Begin your journey in 4 simple steps by ProEarth.
Segregate waste into three different dustbins or containers at home to store different types of waste from wet waste like tea leaves, eggshells, fruit and vegetable peels, and leftovers to dry waste like paper, plastic containers, and glass bottles. And, keep a third container for sanitary waste and hazardous wastes, if any.
Keep all wet kitchen waste in a separate kitchen vessel or plate. Make sure while chopping that you cut scraps and ends into small pieces to help the waste to decompose faster in an odor-free way. Transfer the scraps into a container and make a base of a breathable material such as an earthen pot. Accumulate some dried leaves from the garden, crush them by hand and mix them up with the waste. The volume of dried leaves should roughly match the volume of kitchen waste. You could also add a handful of garden soil, to give the mixture some uniformity and texture.
Add some sour curd or buttermilk to the mixture. Jaggery or a small teaspoon of wine or beer could also do the trick. While adding any liquids make sure the composting mass does not become too soggy. If things get too soggy, dry it up by adding more dry leaves, coco-fibre, soil, or waste paper shredded into small bits. Once done, make sure you do not add any fresh waste to it. Use some more garden soil to cover it up. Close the container with a lid or cover.
Continue to do this for as many days as you need. Keep a close eye on moisture levels, never allowing the medium to get soggy or too wet. Bravo! Time to cheer and celebrate your big little steps towards sustainability!