Composting for Urban Dwellers: Making It Work in the City

It may surprise you to learn that 20–30% of our garbage consists of food scraps and yard debris. However, there is a simple way to do your part and get over the guilt you may have felt when you used to live in an apartment building that didn't recycle. 

Urbanites, it's time to compost. You can become an expert composter even if you live in a tiny flat with only one window and no closet. Composting is actually very easy to do.

Is it possible to start composting at home?

You sure can! Composting does not have to take up a lot of room. Composting is not as nasty and repulsive as most people believe. In urban settings, starting a compost pile is always a straightforward operation. Together, we can make a positive impact on local soils, greener communities, and better food preservation. Recall that crops grow better in healthy soil.

One method to speed up the organic matter's natural breakdown process is composting. You can gain extra advantages, such as fertilizer that is rich in nutrients, by controlling the procedure. Fruits and vegetables grown in compost usually have a higher nutrient content than those grown in artificial fertilizers.

Food scraps, garden debris, and dirty paper are a few examples of organic wastes. When they end up in landfills, they contribute to the emissions of greenhouse gases that are harmful. 

Farmers and gardeners use compost to preserve and improve the life of their soil.  Thus, good soil improves air and water quality, inhibits erosion, and provides a fertile platform for plant growth.

Basics of Composting: What to Compost

An easy way to contribute to the fight against climate change is to compost. What exactly is compost, then? Composting is the process of speeding up the decomposition of organic materials, which you can add to the soil to aid with plant growth. 

Composting organic items, such as food scraps and yard trash, prevents them from ending up in landfills, where they would eventually decompose into methane.

Why is this such a big deal? Methane has a major role in climate change because it traps solar radiation in the atmosphere. Yikes is accurate. It truly benefits both Mother Earth and you!

Three Simple Colors to Compost: Brown, Green, and Blue

To become an expert in your newly green realm, you'll need to have this color wheel close at hand:

You won't have to deal with unpleasant odors if you follow the guidelines for what can be composted and how much air and water to offer your layers of greens and browns. The proportion of greens (nitrogen) to browns (carbon) in your compost pile should be equal. 

Don't forget to stack these various materials. A healthy ratio of carbon to nitrogen speeds up the breakdown of organic materials and makes them far less stinky. This ideal mixture will give you soil that is humid but not wet. On this one, you're really aiming for a "wrung-out sponge" vibe.

The benefits of composting in urban

Composting has various benefits that are evident in metropolitan areas. It may occur in cities, villages, residential areas, or at home. Composted materials can be used by urban gardeners to create lush lawns, gardens, and even street trees. You can still use the compost as fertilizer for your potted plants even if you don't have much room.

The soil can benefit greatly from compost. In addition to beneficial soil bacteria, it supplies nutrients. There will be changes in the soil's structure.

#1 Improves soil quality and nutrients.

One of the most crucial components of healthy ecosystems is healthy soil. Rich in mycorrhizal fungi and helpful microorganisms that connect plants in a robust network of communication, productive soil is teeming with life. This simply indicates that all living things are supported by rich soil. 

Conversely, unhealthy or arid soil is a sign of malfunctioning natural systems. Because barren soil is unable to retain nutrients or water, it is more prone to erosion and more damaging during dry spells without rain. Reducing soil erosion with the addition of pre-compost enhances soil health. 

Reintroducing nutrients, bacteria, and other advantageous composting organisms into the soil is one of compost's main advantages; with time, these systems will get better.

#2 Keeps the climate from warming due to methane

Food waste is kept out of landfills by composting it, which is good for the environment. In landfills, organic waste does not naturally decompose. This is because the anaerobic conditions that landfill garbage produces provide little oxygen for beneficial microorganisms to break down the material. 

Food waste undergoes anaerobic digestion to produce methane gas, a powerful greenhouse gas that traps heat in the atmosphere 25 times more effectively than carbon dioxide. 

#3 Less garbage ends up in landfills

Thirty percent of the food produced on Earth is lost or squandered. Not only can we minimize food waste to the greatest extent possible, but composting alone can redirect as much as 100% of our organic waste. Important nutrients found in organic materials could easily be decomposed and reintroduced into the soil, but instead they end up in landfills. 

Natural ecosystems and habitats are being replaced by enormous landfills, which is uprooting native animals. All landfills must also have a protective plastic coating along their bottoms to stop leaks into the nearby ecosystems, yet leaks have been documented and have harmed the local ecology. 

One step toward eliminating our need for landfills completely is composting. Composting may be done in so many different ways that you can even start your own system indoors if you don't have enough room in your backyard for a compost pile.

#4 Establishes a closed-loop, sustainable system

For many years, the world's leading climate scientists have been telling us that in order to stop climate change and avoid ecological catastrophe, we need to address our impact on the planet. 

One of the best strategies to combat climate change is to reduce carbon emissions and other greenhouse gases released into the environment. Even though 100 enterprises account for 71% of world emissions, meaningful changes in human behavior also depend on individual activity.

Composting has the benefit of repurposing our waste materials into useful resources. Everyone can do it in the comfort of their own homes, and it immediately produces good.

If you have an outdoor space, then you can create your own closed-loop compost system in an outside area, like a patio or backyard, so that any food scraps or yard waste you produce can be recycled back into your own garden. If you are looking for professional advice on composting or homesteading, then you can also visit the official website of Cannon Creek.

In summary

Although it can take more thought and creativity to compost in a city, it is not impossible to accomplish. The hardest part is continuing to compost your food waste on a regular basis.

You can produce your own nutritious food indoors using the clean, nutrient-rich compost you'll receive from city composting. Or, if you choose to sell your compost to neighbors, turn it into a little side gig.

Regardless of how you choose to compost in the city—whether it's by actively composting your waste or taking part in a program run by the city—get creative and contribute to the solution rather than the problem!