This is the closed loop
Community compost program
We pick up food scraps
From our neighbors
Keeping it out of the landfill
And turning it into healthy compost
to grow food with instead
We do this all by bicycle
Burning absolutely no fossil fuels
And we grow our own sponges
And harvest rainwater
To wash the buckets
It’s a closed loop system
and I’m excited to take you out for a ride
To show you how it works
Let’s go!
The program is very simple
And it starts right here in the community
We start by simply giving them a
Clean 5 gallon bucket
and then every week, they fill it with
Their food scraps
And put it back out for us to collect
We take that bucket and we leave them with
A clean bucket
And we come back every single week
So instead of them throwing it in the
Garbage can and it going to the landfill,
Their job is super easy
Just put it right into the bucket
We take it away and what’s really
Important about this program is that the
Community sees it and they learn about
Composting by it being a part of the
community
So our program is bicycle-powered
Which means we’re keeping gas-guzzling
trucks off the road
But you can do this by foot, by bike,
Or with a vehicle
And you can even put a trailer on your
Bike to be able to collect a whole lot of
Compost
So now we’re heading back to the compost
Site
We also have a community compost drop-off
Site for people who are outside of our
Pick-up zone who want to simply drop off
Their food scraps and take a clean bucket
To come back each week
so now lets head back to where we’re
Actually going to compost this food waste
food waste is a big problem but composting
Is a big solution
Food waste is one of the most daunting
Issues of our time both for people and
For this earth as a whole which of course
We know they’re completely connected
But, if we simply composted all of our
Food scraps and food waste
It would be one of the greatest solutions
To the problems we’re in today
We compost both here as well as at
Different garden locations
The compost goes in
Composting can be made very complicated
Or very simple
And really what it comes down to is
You need about two times the amount of
Carbon sources, like wood chips, to
The amount of nitrogen, like food waste
so every bucket of food waste is about
Two buckets of carbon
Alright, I’m not going to lie,
Composting can be smelly and it can bring
In some flies
But with properly managed compost piles
With enough of that carbon
Composting is smooth and
It works really well
After about three months or so
Depending on where you are
This food waste and this carbon matter
Are going to turn into rich compost
That can go to the garden to grow food
So let me take you to our garden
Composting really is turning the problem
Into the solution
Think about it: you’ve got this nasty
Food waste that people don’t want to deal
With that they’re throwing into the
Garbage can that’s all stinky
That goes to the landfill
Where it emits methane
Now what’s the solution?
Composting it turns that problem into
This beautiful solution of quality soil
That you can grow food with
So this soil and that compost
Turns into things like these beautiful
Tomatoes and these pumpkins
Talk about a good solution to a problem
That we have
Now, I told you that we also
Grow our own sponges and harvest our own
Rainwater to make this a true, closed-loop
System, so let me show you that
Rather than using water that comes from
The city that’s full of chemicals and that
Uses a lot of electricity, we harvest
Our water from the sky
Rainwater!
It’s really simple
The water that collects on the roof
Goes into a downspout
And then we just collect it into
Whatever we have
We have these totes and 55 gallon drums
And then, we use this wonderful rainwater
To wash the buckets
But we need a little bit more than
Rainwater and that where these natural
Sponges come into play
Now of course we don’t waste
This water either
This water that we use to clean the bucket
We use this to grow bananas
And, where did this natural sponge
Come from?
Well, we grow it right here in our yard
Let me show you
So sponges don’t just grow
In the sea
This is the loofa squash
Which grows on these vines
Now, you can eat it when its young
Just like a zucchini
Or, you can leave it on the vine
For a while
So that it dries out and becomes
The perfect sponge
We want to see community compost programs
Like this spreading all across the world
and we’re here to help you with that
we provide templates and knowledge
As well as grants
to start more
Community compost initiatives
But no matter what you do,
Just make sure that you start composting
And share this video
If you want more people
to start composting
Share this video, Start composting today!