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Southern Illinois University Enlists Worms to Manage Organic Waste
Southern Illinois University Carbondale (SIUC) recently added two million red earthworms to its sustainability and waste prevention program.
The worms are part of a composting project which began in August 2006 when SIUC’s recycling and solid waste coordinator, Andilee Warner, felt compelled to do something about the more than 1,200 pounds of food waste generated campus-wide every day. All those leftover bagels, hamburgers, and salads that were dumped in local landfills are now being ground up into a dry organic pulp and fed to the worms. Worms break down the organic matter through a process called vermicomposting to produce a high-value compost.
Vermicomposting offers numerous benefits. In terms of waste reduction, one pound (approximately 800-1,000) of mature worms can eat up to half a pound of organic material per day. When used as a soil amendment, vermicompost conserves moisture and improves soil conditions, which helps enhance plant growth and yields.
SIUC’s College of Agricultural Sciences is conducting field tests on its vermicompost to better understand its benefits and to refine how it is used. Researchers are looking at optimal application, responses by different crops and turf grasses to it, and ways to improve the castings. Vermicompost that is not used in field tests is applied on school grounds.
As the program expands, so does the variety of recovered materials in the worms’ daily diet. SIUC recently introduced biodegradable paper products such as napkins and milk cartons from SIUC residence hall cafeterias to the worms’ menu. In addition, a commercial paper shredder provides an alternative food source when dining facilities are closed.
“We must work to change the inherent thought that the first thing you do when you have something to throw away is look for a trash can,” said Warner. “There are so many things we can do to help the environment. Recycle, reuse, or even vermicompost!”
The newly-built barn that houses the worms also is eco-friendly. The University uses recycled motor oil from campus-owned vehicles to heat the building, and the concrete mix used in the building's foundation includes 18 percent fly ash, a coal combustion waste from the University’s steam plant.
SIUC’s composting program exemplifies the type of initiative encouraged by the Resource Conservation Challenge within the national priority area of Municipal Solid Waste Recycling.