Rhonda Sherman, renowned expert on vermicomposting, discussed the process and benefits of composting at home, Wednesday, as part of Earth Month at NC State.
The presentation included two parts. The first focused on composting, which is the controlled process of converting organic materials into valuable soil amendments. The second part dealt with vermicomposting, which is a type of composing that uses special worms to compost the waste — and it is also Sherman’s specialty.
According to Sherman, an endless number of things people encounter in their daily lives can be composted, including everything from grass clippings to pencil shavings. Composting can happen on a small scale in the backyards of houses or on a larger scale in farms.
Some of the tools a composter will need include containers or buckets, a flat shovel, a watering can and a pound of live earthworms. People interested in composting can find plans for bins and ideas for ways to compost on home online. Sherman said it is important to keep your compost bins in a flat and open space, preferably somewhere shady so the compost doesn’t dry out.
When food scraps go to landfill, large amounts of methane are released into the air, Sherman said. Methane is one of the biggest causes of climate change. Food waste from One Earth in Talley Student Union and dining halls around campus get composted as part of the university’s effort towards a greener campus.
Garnett Bullock, a junior studying sustainable energy and technologies and an intern for Sherman, said this event bridges the gap between the efforts that go into composting on campus and the students.
“I am trying to teach people on this campus how easy it is to make this happen,” Bullock said. “If people are aware of that effort than it’s not going to be that hard of a change to think about our waste and … where to put it compared to where we put it right now.”
For students interested in vermicomposting, they can find information on the vermicomposting page, bae.ncsu.edu/topic/vermicomposting, about how to vermicompost at home.
