Day 1 Of The Garbage Reduction Challenge

Today is the first day of the challenge to myself to reduce my garbage output. The main way I'm going to do this is start a compost bin. I've talked about compost a few times in the last week and I think it's one of the best ways average Americans can reduce their waste and overall costs.

Instead of just making a pile in my backyard I will be going to the hardware store today to buy a cheap rubber garbage can. The one we bought for garbage was only $15. I would just use that one but we are still going to have some garbage including bags of cat waste and meat and dairy products that are not good for a compost pile.

After the purchase of this I will be throwing just about all organic materials into it and basically letting it sit in the garage. Although the decomposition will happen with out any interaction at all it's best to keep the compost insulated.

The other reason I'm going to be using a garbage can is that I do not mow our lawn and therefore do not have a lot of grass clippings. Our rental house basically sits on a park with four other houses. This park is a couple acres and is mowed by somebody just about every week. If I leave my gate open she mows it for us. The ride on mower does leave some grass clippings and I will scoop them up as they decompose well in a compost pile.

Since compost piles can become great fertilizer without any intervention, the end result is based on the products that are dumped in.

So here is a list of things you should add to your compost...

• Animal manure


• Cardboard - Small amounts cut up into small pieces (add toilet and paper towel rolls)


• Newspaper


• Coffee grounds and filters


• Dryer and vacuum cleaner lint


• Egg shells (the shells only as the yolks lure vermin and flies)


• Fire place ashes (as long as it's just fire wood)


• Fruits and vegetables


• Hair and fur (make sure to layer these thinly and cover with other material)


• Grass clippings


• Hay and straw


• Houseplants (make sure they are not diseased or insect-ridden)


• Leaves


• Shells from nuts


• Sawdust


• Tea bags


• Wood chips


• Yard trimmings


• Natural charcoal ash (Greenlink Charcoal uses all natural plant charcoal and a natural vegetable binder that will work in compost)

The list is long yes, but there are also things you should avoid depositing in your compost...

• Coal or unnatural charcoal ash (these could contain substances that might be harmful to plants)


• Pet waste (dog and cat waste may contain parasites, pathogens, and other things that can be harmful to humans)


• Disease or insect ridden plants (diseases or insects may survive and harm other plants)


• Dairy products including milk, yogurt, cheese, egg yolks, etc. (cause odor problems and attract vermin and flies)


• Meat or fish bones and scraps (cause odor problems and attract vermin and flies)


• Fats, grease, lards, and oils (cause odor problems and attract vermin and flies)


• Yard trimmings treated with pesticides (these pesticides could kill the bacteria needed for composting)