Banana peels. Moldy bread. Wilted roses. Pet hair. Nail clippings.
In Nashville, about 30% of what people throw away is organic and can be turned into something useful: compost.
The question is — if offered, will people do it?
The city recently announced a pilot program to offer free curbside composting to 750 residents for an entire year. As early as October, the city will provide small, bright green bins to random citizens across Davidson County that will be picked up weekly alongside trash and recycling. Apply here.
Courtesy Andy Chilton/Unsplash Traditional cooking recipes can produce a lot of small food scraps.
The goal is to make composting available to everyone. So, first, the city is gauging interest. More than 1,400 people have already applied, but the city still wants your application, too, to understand how many people might actually participate.
“We really want anyone at all that’s interested in this program to apply,” said Jenn Harrman, who manages Nashville’s Zero Waste program. “The data we gather through that application process is incredibly valuable for what we’re looking to do longterm.”
Compost is made by gathering up organic material so it can decay. Bacteria, fungi, worms and tiny bugs get involved in the process, and the end product contains nutrients accessible for plants and trees and potentially more “binding” properties that can reduce soil erosion.
Soil is its own ecosystem, containing billions and billions of microorganisms. Soil contains minerals, soil organic matter, living organisms, gas, and water, and the amount of organic material is generally considered one of the best indicators of soil quality. The science of compost is still being studied, but it is well established that compost makes soil, plants and trees healthier.
To make curbside composting a reality in Nashville, the city has to ensure capacity. There are some private companies, like Compost Nashville, that currently turn food scraps into compost. But the scale needed for citywide composting does not exist yet. Some cities also use anaerobic digesters to turn the waste stream into an energy source.
Courtesy Sandie Clarke/Unsplash Soil contains billions of microorganisms. Compost can improve the biological, chemical and structural health of soil.
There is also funding. The city covers the bill for waste management through property taxes, and, over time, composting could reduce costs.
Landfills are plugging up, so Middle Tennessee can send trash elsewhere, build more landfills or repurpose trash. Companies are lining up with offers: Murfreesboro, which houses the Middle Point Landfill, signed a contract with a company that will burn its waste at coal and gas plants. Another company proposed building a big landfill on a Superfund site where Monsanto created chemical weapons.
Composting could prove more sustainable — both financially and environmentally. Compost is considered a climate solution as it reduces methane emissions from landfills (the third largest source of methane). And it could help Nashville create a local, circular economy.
“This is a very hyperlocal process,” Harrman said. “This is something where we are taking our own food scraps and we are putting them back into Middle Tennessee soils.”
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