Events educating people on the benefits of home composting are to be held across the globe next week (5-11 May) as part of International Compost Awareness Week (ICAW) 2014.
Runby the U S Composting Council (in the US) and sponsored by companies including: compostable products manufacturer BioBag; waste management firm Recology; and organics waste management company WeCare Organics, the 11th annual publicity and education campaign showcases composting and compost products, from gardens to large-scale composting facilities.
‘Compost: The Solution to Sustainable Soil and Water’
This year’s theme for ICAW is ‘Compost: The Solution to Sustainable Soil and Water’, which focuses on how composting can replace chemical fertiliser as a sustainable alternative and uses fewer resources in its production. It also promotes pesticide-free farming practices.
The message is highlighted in this year’s poster (pictured above), which was designed by Tam Pham Hoang Buu, a high school student at the ABC International School in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. His design won the annual poster competition from a field of 116 submissions in student and adult categories, coming from 29 countries around the world, with about half from the United States.
Buu received a $500 prize (£296) for his design, which will be the theme of posters, T-shirts and all ICAW 2014 promotional material.
“This competition allows me to have a chance to protect the environment through the use of design”, he said.
There is a side theme of‘Compost in Your Everyday Life’, which highlights the prevalence of composting practices in local communities.
A number of councils from across the UK will be encouraging people to take up composting as part of the campaign week, including Luton Borough Council, Nottinghamshire County Council, and Isle of Anglesey County Council, which will all be giving away free compost bins; North East Lincolnshire Council, which is partnering with http://getcomposting.com/ to host a range of compost awareness events and offer residents a ‘buy one, get one half price’ deal on compost bins; and Carmarthenshire County Council, which will be selling compost bins for £5.
Benefits of composting
According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, composting organic waste has numerous benefits, helping to enrich soil with nutrients, remediate contaminated soil, prevent erosion, avoid the build up of damaging methane and leachate, and reduce the need for water, fertilisers and pesticides.
Furthermore, home composting helps prevent household waste reaching landfill and reduces the need for mass-produced compost, which often contains peat, a valuable but increasingly dwindling natural habitat and store of carbon dioxide.
A ‘good’ mixture of compost should include around 50 per cent 'green' materials (garden waste, vegetables, tea bags etc), and 50 per cent 'brown' materials (paper bags, egg shells, egg boxes, and vacuum cleaner dust).
Find out more about International Compost Awareness Week 2014.
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