Q&A With Winston Averill, King Of Compost

Winston Averill, of the Southeastern Connectuct Regional Resource Recovery Authority, is the King of Compost. Averill said it's never too late to start a compost pile and better yet, he told Patch exactly why and how to do so.

Averill said taking food scraps and paper products out of the trash reduces the weight of the household waste and and, consequently, reduces the fees that towns are charged for waste removal. It is one of the few town fees (read: taxes) that residents can influence directly and monthly.

Composting utilizes two types of materials that should be layered. After each “green” layer, just throw a “brown layer” on top. Typical green material is grass clippings, kitchen scraps, weeds, leftover fruits from the garden. Brown materials may include brown, dry leaves, cornstalks, straw or mulch. Bancroft said mulch is readily available at the transfer station.

What is Composting?

Composting is the recycling of organic materials into a rich, soil that has many beneficial properties.  Anything that was once alive can be composted!  Composting takes materials, most often waste or discarded items, and uses biological processes to convert that material into heat, water, carbon and compost or humus. 

Gardeners and organic farmers have long known the process and more importantly the benefits of compost and composting.  And composting can be actively managed, as large companies do with leaves, brush, and other organics, or more passively – similar to Mother Nature herself!  

Why Compost?

The response to this is many and varied.  Many households compost their garden wastes and autumn leaves because of the simplicity of composting.  Composting garden wastes ensures that the finished humus is ready to be incorporated into the soil in the spring; it takes a discard, and transforms it into a usable product. 

Sometimes making a compost pile is the easiest, simplest way to manage materials such as leaves.  And kitchen scraps can also be separated and composted, reducing trash, getting the “Yuk” items out of the trash container (no smell) and producing a product.  In one sense it’s all “hands off” – except for occasional turning and stirring.

What is compostable?

This is a common question folks ask.  Most people know that leaves, chipped brush and left over garden vegetables can be composted.  But the question might better be posed by reversing it – what can’t be composted? Well there are the traditional recyclables – glass, cans and plastic containers, etc.  But from the household “waste” stream, there are a myriad of items that fall neatly into the compostable column.  There’s all the food waste, scraps, uneaten food, those “mystery” containers in the back of the refrigerator.  Included are items such as egg shells, soiled paper products, even the old pizza box, or ice cream box!   Leftover milk, pickle juice, rinsed cans and jars liquid – all can go right into the compost heap.  Here’s a good tip; if you are uncertain, and the material is not toxic or obviously non-compostable (glass) feel free to try composting it.

How do I get started?

Perhaps the best way to get started is to observe that composting already underway – naturally, -  nature is already composting in every forest and every patch of woods.  But to get started, amass material, and produce usable compost, a few simple steps can go a long way. 

First start with enthusiasm, a place or spot in your yard, and perhaps an enclosure.  One can start with simply a pile of leaves – but building an enclosure helps contain the materials, and elevate it for quicker composting.  A simple wire enclosure or even a bin formed of old pallets will work fine.  If you are planning to add food scraps you might want to consider investing in a Backyard Composting Bin.  These Bins contain the food scraps, control moisture, keep vectors out (raccoons, etc.) and accelerate the composting process.  SCRRRA sells Backyard Compost Bins at cost ($45) in order to facilitate home composting – and importantly get food scraps out of the trash.

It’s never too late in the season to start composting.  But the microbes, fungi and bacteria that do the work of composting slow way down in the colder weather.  So compostable items – leaves, food scraps, will accumulate in cold weather – but once the warmer weather begins the biological process of composting begins again with a vengeance! 

So remember – composting organics is fun, simple, and easy to start.  All one needs is organic materials, patience, and maybe simple equipment that can be constructed or purchased.  Don’t let future humus go to waste by tossing organics into the trash!