Domestic Composting Program Implementation

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1 CONTACT Domestic Composting Program Implementation Miguel ARANDA DA SILVA, Cidália MARTINS, Elisabete PINHEIRO VALORLIS Valorização e Tratamento de Resíduos Sólidos, S.A. Leiria, Portugal Miguel ARANDA DA SILVA VALORLIS Valorização e Tratamento de Resíduos Sólidos, S.A. Leiria, Portugal Quinta do Banco, Leiria Telephone: (+351) Fax: (+351) miguel.aranda@valorlis.pt EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The management of municipal solid waste must involved several actions to promote waste reduction. In the last years, domestic composting is becoming an important measure to achieve the reduction of organic waste from landfill and contribute to an environmental sustainability. In 2007, VALORLIS started a Domestic Composting Program based on the distribution of composting bins, followed by some actions in order to sensitize and training, in partnership with several civil parishes of the region served by the Municipal Solid Waste Management System of the Alta Estremadura (Leiria, Portugal). In order to follow the Domestic Composting Program an internet database was developed. This database allowed a closed monitorization and the proper distribution and use of composting bins, and registration of all contacts (clarification of doubts, visits and other events) established between users, and VALORLIS or other participant institutions. Specific surveys were conducted to evaluate the Domestic Composting Program which indicates fairly good participation levels. The purpose of this presentation is to analyse the implementation of the Domestic Composting Program, namely the methodologies used for distribution and training, identifying the several factors of success and the critical paths in the development of this program. INTRODUCTION The Municipal Solid Waste Management System of VALORLIS, includes six municipalities of the Alta Estremadura region, namely, Pombal, Leiria, Ourém, Marinha Grande, Batalha and Porto de Mós, in an area of 2,160 km 2 and with a population of approximately inhabitants [1]. In average, each inhabitant produces about 1.32 kg/day of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) [2]. According to recent characterizations of waste the total component of fermentable waste is 44.31% [3]. Considering that the amount of MSW from households tends to increase in the next years, it is essential to adopt measures to reverse this situation, specially minimizing the impact of the organic fraction in the environment.

2 Domestic composting is set to be a reliable measure in the treatment of the organic content of MSW and may contribute greatly to reducing the amount of organic waste from landfill. The Domestic Composting Program was developed in three main stages. The first stage consisted in the development of a School Composting Project which had the collaboration of the Agrupamento de Escolas de Colmeias group of public schools of the civil parish of Colmeias, Leiria. The second stage was taken place with the collaboration of the Instituto Politécnico de Leiria (IPL) that developed a study identifying which the civil parishes have the most potential for this programme. At last, the third stage consisted in the definition of the diferent target users; number of composting bins for distribution; development of information materials; implementation of some actions to sensitize and project evaluation. This third stage involved three phases of composting bins distribution. The evaluation of the program for each of the three phases of composting bins distribution has three main objectives: (i) assess the adherence and participation of resident s; (ii) check whether composting bins are properly delivered and used and (iii) to estimate the amount of organic waste that can be diverted from landfill. DOMESTIC COMPOSTING OF MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTES Domestic Composting: Main Definition Domestic Composting is a small scale process of biodegradation of organic matter, such as yard and food waste. The decomposition is performed by micro-organisms, mostly bacteria, but also yeasts and fungi in adequate oxygen, humidity and nutrient conditions producing a compost appropriate for soil use with various economic and environmental advantages [4]. Composting Process: Technical-Scientific and Requirements for its Applicability The decomposition process of the organic matter begins with the degradation of the sugars, with is processed by the bacteria and other microorganisms, which originates a fast increase of the microbial and, consequently, of the temperature. The ideal is that temperature reach 55ºC and maintain it for three or four weeks in order for the pathogenic agents that may exist in the composting bin could be destroyed. This stage is denominated thermophilic. At this stage it is necessary to create the optimal conditions for the development of the microbial population. The main factors are the amount of Nitrogen (N) and Carbon (C) present in the waste, temperature, oxygen level, ph and moisture. The C is used as a source of energy and N allows the cellular growth. The ideal C/N ratio for the composting process is of about 30:1, meaning that the microorganisms need 30 times more C than N to be kept active. To ensure that the microbial population develops it is, therefore, necessary to mix waste rich in C with waste rich in N. After the degradation of the sugars takes place, the degradation of the proteins, fats and cellulose starts until they run completely out. The microbial action decreases, as well as the temperature, beginning the maturation phase. The temperatures that ensure an effective composting vary between the 45ºC and 59ºC [5]. It is necessary to assure a good circulation of air in the composting bin in order for the degradation of waste to take place in aerobic conditions, avoiding in this way the rapid appearance of insects and odours. An adequate moisture level promotes the activity of the microorganisms and the oxygen supply.

The composted waste may be are usually divided in green waste, e.g. grass, remains of vegetables and fruits, composed mainly by nitrogen, and brown waste, e.g. dry leaves and flowers, rich in carbon.

3 The composted waste may be are usually divided in green waste, e.g. grass, remains of vegetables and fruits, composed mainly by nitrogen, and brown waste, e.g. dry leaves and flowers, rich in carbon. DOMESTIC COMPOSTING PROGRAM Program stages 1 st Stage School Composting Between February and July 2005, VALORLIS developed the School Composting Project in partnership with a group of Schools from Colmeias (Leiria). There were 15 Elementary Schools involved in this project and in each one had management training about this project. Also, for each school was given a 290 liter composting bin with the aim of reducing organic waste coming from the school canteen or even from the students and teachers homes. The compost produced was used in organic gardening beds prepared and maintained by students and teachers. 2 nd Stage Choosing the most potential civil parishes Civil parish is the Portuguese term for Freguesia, the secondary local administrative unit in Portugal. The development of this program was based on the study conducted by IPL - "Study for the Location of domestic composters in the Area of Intervention of Municipal Solid Waste Management Systems of Alta Estremadura and Oeste" which identified the areas with the most potential for distribution of such equipment. According to the report made by the IPL, among 84 civil parishes in the six municipalities, 63 were considered with the most potential for distribution of domestic composting. For the classification of each civil parishes several criteria was used, such as, population density; type of dwelling and type of civil parish. The report also considered three types of areas according to the region geography and the heterogeneous distribution of the population: (i) Predominantly Rural Areas (PRA), (ii) Semi-Urban Areas (SUA) and (iii) Predominantly Urban Areas (PUA). 3 rd Stage Composting Program Implementation This stage includes the definition of the number of composting bins to be distributed in each civil parish and school; development of information materials and preparation of training and implementation of action in order to sensitize. Meanwhile this third stage is divided into three distinct phases as showed in the following figure:

4 Figure 1. Different phases of the 3 rd Stage. In the 63 civil parishes that show the greatest potential for domestic composting, in a first phase 19 were select (13 semi-urban, 4 predominantly urban and 2 predominantly rural). At this stage of the program 2,094 composter bins were delivered to the local population. For the second phase, 9 civil parishes were selected (7 semi-urban, 1 predominantly rural and 1 predominantly urban). At this stage of the program 1,406 composter bins were delivered to the local population. Distribution of Composting Bins Methodology One of the critical factors for the successful development of this program is the level of participation of local population. To promote the rate of participation there was set up partnerships with the civil parishes. These partnerships played an extremely relevant role in the dissemination and implementation of the program. The program disclosure was held in the form of flayers, using a website and through the local media (radio and newspapers). A total of 3,250 Milko composter bins with a capacity of 290 liter were acquired in the first phase to distribute to interested parties after the management training and sensitize actions. From the beginning there was a deep concern to give a strong theoretical and practical training for motivating local population to join the project. The training activities include the technical approach of organic gardening in order to aware people to the importance of the production of compost and its application in the environment. The civil parishes contribute significantly to the identification of potential interested persons in the program forwarding them through "mouth to mouth" contact to the management training and sensitize actions. Each civil parish delivered material, such as, flayers and posters to promote the program and bring more people to the sensitize actions. Training sessions were scheduled in close collaboration with VALORLIS, mostly post-labour and with an hour and half session. Each session management training and sensitize actions had an average of forty people. All participants in this program receive a certificate of participation, as well as, a guide of good practices in domestic composting. Also, each participant in the program fill a registration form with their personal data and the number of assigned composter bin. An internet access database was developed in order to allow the different civil parishes involved in the program to register all delivered composter bins. The database can also record all events associated with each composter, such as, telephone contacts or personal visits. By this way it is possible to track the distribution and use of all delivered composter bins. In order to allow adequate monitoring of residents after composter deliver, an address was created, which should be used to post questions or requests by the users. When it was requested personal visits to homes participants was made. During the visits, the different parameters are monitored to check the proper development of the composting process, while the participants are advised on the best domestic composting practices. Also, all schools were invited to participate in the composting program. For this, special training for teachers that joined the program was proposed.

Assessment of Domestic Composting Programme The level of participation evaluation and analyses of the difficulty factors In order to assess the population level of participation and analyze the

5 Assessment of Domestic Composting Programme The level of participation evaluation and analyses of the difficulty factors In order to assess the population level of participation and analyze the factors that may cause difficulties in the domestic composting development, a study was carried out through telephone surveys. This study was applied to the all population of residents using a composting bin, (1,848 in 30/06/08), allowing conclusions on the development of the program and evaluates the possibility of extending the program to the second phase. Determination of the amount of organic waste that can be composted - "Pilot Families" A major evaluation objective of the program is associated with minimization of Municipal Organic Waste (MOW) deposited in landfill. Knowing that the majority of waste comes from households and the most of it can be composted, the quantities associated to the different household sizes were estimated. A sample of 2% of 1,000 composters bins (20 families) delivered until the beginning of the study (March 2008) was defined. The civil parishes with the greatest potential for production of Biodegradable Municipal Waste (BMW) were selected taking into account the IPL report. Different civil parishes requires different amount of waste produced. In this sense, the main goal was to obtain a representative sample of different household s sizes. For that, families of 2 people, 3 people, 4 people or 5 and more were chosen. A quarterly monitoring program was set for each family. It involves 80 visits and each family received a 16 liter bucket and a paper form to record the amount of waste put in the composter bin. The form register the number of buckets put in the composter bin and added description of the type of waste. Samples taken from each family had the representativeness of the study population, in order to provide key data that could be generalized to the universe of families. Based on the results and considering the number of composting bins delivered to the population per household it was possible to estimate the amount of waste diverted from landfill. Table 1. Results get it from the pilot families. Given these figures it is possible to estimate the amount of waste diverted from landfill to date (Table 1). Considering the previous results and the number of composting bins deliver to each family of the population it was possible to estimate the organic waste fraction deflect from landfill (Table 2).

Table 2. Wastes deflected from the landfill. In these results is not considered the composting bins delivered to the families with less then 2 persons and more then 10 people.

6 Table 2. Wastes deflected from the landfill. In these results is not considered the composting bins delivered to the families with less then 2 persons and more then 10 people. The main reasons was that for less then 2 people the waste quantity was little significant and for more then 10 people it involves schools that were not involve in this study. Discussion and Final Results The Composting Program Implementation was developed in three different phases. The first phase begins in December of 2007 and ended in July of It was involved 19 civil parishes, 117 schools and a total of 2,094 composting bins. In the second phase that occurs between October of 2008 and June of 2008 involved 9 civil parishes, 74 schools and 1,406 composting bins. Also 65 management training sessions were developed in the first and second stages. At the end of the first stage it was developed a study to understand the participation level of the population, the several difficulties occur through the development of the program and the main reasons that made some people to quit the program. The results of this study show that 89.9% of the population use composting bins, 8.5% don t yet initiate the use of composting bins and only 1.6% quit to use composting bins in their homes. There are several reasons that made people to quit, such as, inappropriate place to put the composting bin or change to another residence. Also, the people that quit decided to deliver their composting bon to their neighbor because according to them they were more able to do domestic composting. The results show in the first phase was very satisfactory and revealing good perspectives for the implementation of the third phase. Meanwhile, after the second phase it is been developed a new study through telephone survey and it involves 3,070 participants that were involved from the begging of the program. In this study it will be evaluated the loyalty and the main factors that could bring some difficulties for the users. Another way to evaluate the user s difficulties is to follow in a personal way. For example, in the first phase it was made 80 visits and in second phase 58 visits. Through this way it was possible to see that there is a problem to follow the domestic composting process and the great majority had problems in make the proper circulation of air and moister in the compost. One of the main of goals of this program is to find the quantity of organic wastes that are possible to compost. In the first stage 1,323 tones of organic wastes was estimated. However in practical terms there is a deflection of 1,062 tons of organic wastes. This difference is due to the less number of composting bins distributed between August and September of At the end of the second phase it was deflected from landfill 1,483 tons of organic wastes.

7 CONCLUSION In recent year s organic wastes rate is growing at family households, so there is a great concern to promote to the population the process of domestic composting and by this way minimize the quantity of organic wastes to landfill. In the implementation of the Domestic Composting Program by VALORLIS it was very important the partnership with the several civil parishes. By that it was possible to promote the message through the local population and alert for the importance of reducing organic wastes and their valorisation contributing in an active way for an environmental sustainability and environmental awareness. In other hand, management training and sensitize actions are very important to maintain local population in touch with development of the program. The necessity of carry out personal visits to the family households or schools, in order to evaluate the adherence of the people to program and to verify the real difficulties of domestic composting was very important for the success so far of this project. However, there are some issues involving abandonment of some participants, e.g. some teachers are less motivated to follow the program and some quit. In conclusion, the next steps to achieve the main goal of the program is to continue the collaboration with the several civil parishes and schools and follow the population that decided to embrace this program and want to reduce organic wastes from landfill and so improve the environment. REFERENCES [1] Empresa Geral de Fomento. (2009). Caracterização de Resíduos Sólidos Urbanos do Sistema Municipal da Alta Estremadura [In Portuguese]. Relatório 1º Período de Campanha, Junho 2009, pp.23, Lisboa. [2] EPA. (2004). Composting yard Trimmings and Municipal Solid Waste, 151 pp. EPA, Washington DC. [3] Instituto Nacional de Estatística (2007): (Jun. 25, 2009). [4] Russo, M.A.T., Tratamento dos Resíduos Sólidos [In Portuguese]. Universidade de Coimbra: Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Departamento de Engenharia Civil, Coimbra. [5] Sociosistemas. (2008). Compostagem Doméstica de Resíduos Orgânicos. Estudo para a determinação do nível de participação e diagnóstico dos factores de dificuldade, Lisboa.

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