A Year of Accomplishments
In May of 2014, we stopped picking up preconsumer restaurant waste for free, but we continue to collect kitchen scraps from five loyally supportive and paying Milwaukee restaurants. Even as we phased down our postconsumer pilot program by late spring, in the early part of the year, we picked up from more than 15 restaurants. Individual restaurant volumes vary widely from week to week
The Future of Composting is Residential
MIT has produced an excellent new study of the new frontier in municipal waste management: curbside compost collection. The study looks at every aspect of this growth area in composting and considers best practices from the perspectives of cost, compliance, and quality of results. The Kompost Kids are lobbying for compost adoption at every level: commercial, municipal, and residential. We’ve helped teach many Milwaukee
Growing Local Fertility – New Report
The Highfields Center for Composting and the Institute for Local Self-Reliance recently collaborated on an exhaustive new report on community composting that featured Kompost Kids and similar organizations in other cities that are spreading the gospel of local disposal and soil regeneration (see page 47). The report goes deeply into the whys, hows, and whats of community composting at a variety of scales, from “home hubs”
Tom’s of Maine, Our Continued Gratitude
Thanks again to Tom’s of Maine for its generous support to the Kompost Kids mission of organics diversion, compost education, and sustainable business practice.
Beware: Coffee Pods Lurking!
Sorry, Keurig converts, but coffee pods are simply no fun in the compost bin, community or otherwise. Thrice in the past several weeks, I’ve pulled a load of single-serving pods out of our contribution bin at the Scooter Foundation at Buffum and Wright and brought them home to harvest the grounds and paper filter and pitch the remnant unsavories, the foil top and plastic
Spring Heat
It’s still pretty chilly in Milwaukee, but things are heating up at our compost sites. All four of our River West sites are back in action, ready for new contributions, and are looking especially good after some spring cleaning. It’s a wonderful thing to behold a once-frozen pile of material having fully thawed out and beginning to reheat as the bacteria rapidly colonize and
Bradley Tech HS – 2014 Dirt Day Winner
Kompost Kids is proud to announce Bradley Tech High School as the beneficiary of this year’s Dirt Day giveaway on May 10. We’ll be building compost bins, painting buckets, moving dirt, and working with our new partner to launch their community garden. Stop by to join in the fun, 12 – 4 p.m. Congratulations, Bradley Tech! Once again, we’ll be harnessing all the people
Spring Training for Composters
Sign up now for spring offerings in our education series. The Milwaukee County UW-Extension and Kompost Kids are pleased to offer Master Composter Volunteer Training. This program is a statewide educational program developed and coordinated through the UW-Extension Solid & Hazardous Waste Education Center (SHWEC). The objective of the Master Composter program is to train individuals who want to become Certified Master Composters and
We’re Thawing Out
Spring is getting closer, and we’re gradually thawing out. Due to the consistent extreme cold we experienced this winter, several of our sites reached capacity and remained frozen solid for several weeks running, leaving us unable to do turnings or make room for new material. As the bins thaw out in the next few weeks, we’ll be adding to our resting piles, encouraging gardeners
2014 Dirt Day
The Kompost Kids mission includes providing donated and discounted compost/soil products to qualifying community gardens in the Milwaukee area. Contact us for more information on how we can benefit your urban agriculture project. Our 2014 compost application and Dirt Day announcement are now online. Please help us spread the word. We will collect applications through April 7, evaluate potential recipients, and announce the winning garden