The University of Vermont's Independent Voice Since 1883

The Vermont Cynic

The University of Vermont's Independent Voice Since 1883

The Vermont Cynic

The University of Vermont's Independent Voice Since 1883

The Vermont Cynic

Enviro-nerd finds beauty, practicality in composting

The word compost can often make the average person immediately cringe at the thought of rotting food scraps.

The word may even be followed by other words such as disgusting, smelly or even and perhaps the most feared by a compost enthusiast repulsive.

As an Eco-Rep at UVM, I will admit that I have had my fair share of difficulties with my own compost, like the time when I had a swarm of fruit flies living in my tiny MAT dorm room. And, this past summer when I had to scoop two-day-old coleslaw into the Cook compost dumpster with my bare hands.

These were times when I may have used the above-mentioned words to describe compost. But despite its challenges and its smell, compost should not be feared.

It is a beautiful process.

Soil grows our food and then our food scraps are formed back into soil that will be used to grow more food a perfect closed circle.

To an enviro-nerd like myself, compost is purely awesome. Mold is just as powerful as it is unsightly. I love to tell anyone that is interested, which I admit may be few, that in my own personal compost, I once saw an army of mold conquer a full-sized carrot and split it open to invade its insides.

Despite its kick-ass properties and practical uses, many students still carry a negative connotation with the name compost.

Erica Spiegel, an Eco-Reps program advisor and the UVM recycling and solid waste manager, suggested at our Eco-Rep orientation this past week that we should consider renaming compost food recycling in order for students to associate it with recycling, a word they will undoubtedly recognize and associate with positively.

Whatever we call it, compost is here to stay.

According to UVMs recycling and waste management program, in an average week we divert about nine tons of food scraps from landfills. With new signage all over campus and increased promotion in resident halls, these numbers will only increase in the coming year.

Cant you smell that smell? Its the smell of change.

More to Discover
Activate Search
Enviro-nerd finds beauty, practicality in composting