GREENFIELD — “Was that right?” said one Greenfield High School student, turning to face Amy Donovan, the Franklin County Solid Waste District’s program director, in the cafeteria after chucking a milk carton in a nearby composting bin.
“Exactly,” responded Donovan. The student’s moment of confusion was warranted, judging from the four separate disposal bins arrayed in front of him. One for trash, one for food waste, one for liquids and the last for utensils, they represented a big shift in how the school handles what’s left over after meals.
Greenfield High School students and staff began composting during lunch on Friday, following the Discovery School at Four Corners and the Math and Science Academy in implementing a grant-funded program to turn waste to soil.
The difference was immediately noticeable, said Madison Walker, the department’s food service director.
During the first lunch, which did not compost, the school generated about three bags of trash. The next two lunches, when composting was implemented, shared one bag and didn’t fill it completely.
“It’s a huge savings, for space and all,” Walker said. The department saves money in trash hauling fees through the composting program, Donovan said.
Since the composting programs were implemented earlier this year in the other two schools, Donovan said they’ve seen a reduction in waste of between 75 and 86 percent.
“Four Corners’ fourth-graders weighed the compost and trash from the kitchen and cafeteria for a week, and the results were amazing: 273 pounds of compost, 101 pounds trash, and 10 gallons recycling!” she said.
The cafeterias also started recycling bottles, cans, containers and aluminum foil for the first time.
Besides the composting, the high school recently switched from cardboard trays to washable plastic ones, which Donovan said also reduce waste.
“It’s a major culture shift,” she said.
Cairo Usher, who helped lead his classmates in the proper procedure from behind the bins, has already embraced that shift.
“It’s fun,” he said. “It makes you feel good, and you’re helping the Earth.”
Alan Schmidt, the facilities director, said he’s also seen a big change in the amount of waste his department has to keep up with.
“It’s great that I don’t have to call in an emergency trash pick-up, it all just gets composted,” noted Schmidt. He said the department’s wood shop has also been able to begin composting all of its sawdust, saving room in the shop.
Donovan said she expects the rest of Greenfield schools will implement the program soon. In all, the solid waste district runs composting programs in 15 Franklin County schools, she said.
All of the waste is sent to Martin’s Farm on Plain Road to be composted.
You can reach Tom Relihan at:
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