Ryan and I didn't know just how beneficial composting our kitchen scraps could be until we started doing some research. The following is information from the Environment America Research and Policy Center that does a good job explaining why composting is so good for the planet!
----------
Compost can help create a robust and sustainable agricultural system.
Topsoil, the nutrient-rich layer of soil vital for growing food, is being degraded and eroded at alarming rates, threatening our ability to grow enough food in the future. According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, one-third of the world’s topsoil is already degraded, and topsoil in the United States is eroding at more than nine times its natural rate of replacement.
-
Compost can replenish the nutrients in soil, restoring fertility in land that has been depleted.
-
Compost can help prevent topsoil erosion by allowing the soil to absorb more water during heavy rainfalls and by fostering robust plant growth. One study found that the application of compost helped to reduce soil loss by 86 percent.
Composting helps tackle global warming.
Organic waste does not decompose in the dark, low-oxygen conditions in landfills. Instead, its degradation produces methane, a greenhouse gas about 56 times more potent than carbon dioxide over a 20-year period. Landfills are the nation’s third-largest source of methane emissions, emitting 108 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2017 – more than the total emissions of 34 individual states in 2016. Composting organic material could significantly reduce methane emissions.
Unlike landfilling, composting organic material helps plants and microorganisms to grow and actually pulls carbon out of the atmosphere. One model found that applying compost to 50 percent of California’s land used for grazing could sequester the amount of carbon currently emitted by California’s homes and businesses.
Compost can replace synthetic chemical fertilizers, which can:
-
Deplete soil in the long run,
-
Produce nitrous oxide – a greenhouse gas up to 310 times as potent as carbon dioxide over a 100-year period,
-
Produce nitrogen oxides, which can contribute to the formation of smog and cause respiratory problems and damage the lungs, and
-
Wash into waterways and fuel the growth of algal blooms that can kill or displace large numbers of fish and produce toxins that can sicken and kill animals and people who make contact with the water or consume contaminated shellfish and other organisms.
----------
To read the full article, visit: https://environmentamerica.org/reports/ame/composting-america