Headwaters Magazine - Fall 2021

Page 35

UVM to Stop Composting ‘Compostable’ Products January, 2022 By Jolie Scott

The University of Vermont (UVM) carries prestige in its environmental awareness and many aspiring applicants are attracted to the school’s sustainable commitments, one of which is a key part of campus life: composting. Food waste and compostable foodware products (e.g., plates, utensils, napkins that meet physical and chemical breakdown criteria) are collected daily in dining and residence halls and sent to a commercial compost facility. Composting has been a decade-long practice at the University; however, beginning Jan. 1, 2022, the compost facility UVM uses, Green Mountain Compost (GMC), will no longer be accepting compostable foodware products, marking the end of an era. This is the perfect opportunity for the school community to ensure that UVM takes the right steps forward in reducing single-use disposable packaging altogether. Highlighting this importance is The Princeton Review’s (a popular test preparation company) “Top Green School” list in which UVM’s position has been falling significantly. In 2018, UVM was named number three out of 50 schools, whereas in 2021 their rank fell to number 44, and for 2022’s version they are being kicked off the list entirely. Student advocacy, like the 2019 fossil fuel divestment campaign, is the main reason UVM upholds environmentally friendly decisions and as the climate crisis worsens, we must keep pressuring the University to keep up with the standards of a green school. Every week, UVM sends 15 tons of compost, including food scraps and foodware, to GMC, the Organics Diversion facility in Williston managed by Chittenden Solid Waste District (CSWD). These compostable products are implemented in nearly every dining location on campus, including retail. Such products include food service packaging that comes in the form of green Eco-Products utensils, Greenware drink cups, uncoated paper take-out containers, Green Mountain coffee cups, or any other product that is labeled ‘compostable.’ These materials are frequently used as substitutes in dining

halls for washable plates and cups. Similarly, they serve as the primary take-out containers for retail locations like the Skinny Pancake. Beginning next year, however, these materials will be banned from GMC. As of right now, GMC is the only commercial compost facility near UVM that accepts compostable packaging. According to Corey Berman, the Program Manager of UVM Recycling & Zero Waste, when the ban is put into effect, UVM Dining will continue to serve food using the packaging on account of supply issues that make it impossible to switch to another product. The school cannot choose another facility to divert waste to as transportation costs would be too high and many facilities have already banned compostable foodware products. The alternative to getting rid of this waste is to throw it in the trash where it will be taken to a landfill or an incinerator. Landfills are only designed to store waste, not break it down. It can take upwards of a couple centuries for some waste to completely biodegrade, and even then the average life expectancy of a landfill is only 30-50 years. In landfills, microorganisms that function without oxygen break down organic matter, such as food waste, and produce biogas as a by-product. Biogas is composed mainly of methane and carbon dioxide which, when released into the atmosphere, contribute to greenhouse gas emissions. According to the EPA, food waste accounts for 24 percent of the waste that enters landfills. Luckily, composting is one way to reduce this percentage to instead create a nourishing mixture that enhances the health of soil and plants. Oxygen-dependent microorganisms in compost, such as bacteria and fungi, feed on decaying organic matter like food waste and transform it into nutrient-rich soil, commonly referred to as “black gold” by farmers. This process has many benefits such as conserving water, reducing erosion, and cutting the waste stream. GMC is valuing these benefits with their new ban by reducing factors that can ruin compost quality such

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