Why Composting Matters

Municipal Waste

• Municipal waste is a rapidly growing issue in the U.S., and composting presents a path forward.

• As one of the wettest and heaviest material inputs for municipal waste, diverting yard trimmings and food scraps to composting facilities, states and localities can significantly reduce the volume of material destined for landfills and trash incinerators.

• The US EPA estimates that over 40% of all US MSW is compostable

Climate

• Food scraps and yard trimmings, when sent to landfills, produce methane, a greenhouse gas with a global warming potential 84 times more powerful than carbon dioxide in the short term. By composting instead, we can greatly reduce the greenhouse gas emissions currently emitted from landfills. Trash incinerators are also huge emitters of greenhouse gases.

• According to the EPA, landfills are the third largest source of anthropogenic methane emissions, annually emitting the carbon dioxide equivalents of nearly 250 million barrels of oil, or over 23 million passenger vehicles driven for one year. Food waste, a main contributor to methane emissions, alone accounts for 22% of all municipal solid waste. Diverting large amounts of food waste to composting has the potential to significantly reduce the large amount of methane emissions contributed by landfills.

• Compost enhances the soil’s ability to sequester and keep atmospheric carbon in the earth through building soil organic matter.

Soil Health

• Because compost is rich in organic matter and nutrients, it benefits soil health and the environment through structural amelioration, increased water holding capacity, and greater water infiltration capabilities.

• An estimated 28% of all U.S. cropland (99 million acres) is eroding so fast that the long-term productivity of the soil cannot be maintained.

• Using sustainable soil-enriching compost helps prevent erosion of valuable topsoil without depleting valuable wildlife habitats.

• Another benefit of composting vs. landfilling is the capturing of nutrients and minerals in the food scrap and returning them to the soil.

• Compost is used in both rural and urban agriculture.

• Compost can also be used in green infrastructure projects, helping to manage stormwater through soil systems, pavements, landscaping, and other methods. Compost helps retain stormwater and prevents flooding and runoff.

• Compost product provides the following benefits to our nation’s soil.

  • Improves the soil structure and increases permeability and infiltration.

  • Provides needed organic matter.

  • Stabilizes the soil pH by increasing the soil’s buffering capacity.

  • Improves moisture holding capacity, reducing erosion and run-off.

  • Enables soils to retain nutrients longer.

  • Restores and enhances soil microbial communities and biological activity.

   

• Investing in our country’s composting infrastructure presents an opportunity for economic impact – not only in terms of job creation and economic output, but also cost-savings that can be realized by shifting materials to composting instead of landfilling.

• A study by the Institute for Local Self-Reliance found that composting facilities on a per ton basis sustain two times more jobs than landfills and four times more jobs than incineration facilities. Composting facilities employ workers across various roles – from vehicle drivers to business development and product marketing to accounting.

• Composting infrastructure pays back five (5) times the ROI for every dollar invested versus landfills and seventeen (17) times versus incineration.

• An economic analysis from ReFED found that every million tons of processed compost has been estimated to create 1,600 or more additional ancillary service jobs from compost utilization in green infrastructure or agriculture.

• Diverting organic materials  to compost operations offers robust savings for state and local governments and facilities. For example, in 2011, Middlebury College in Vermont saved $100,000 on landfill fees by composting 90% of food waste generated on campus. The 370 tons of food Middlebury composted translated into a savings of $270 per ton of waste. 

• Composting represents a manufacturing enterprise that produces a value-added product for multiple end markets.  

• According to the Institute for Local Self Reliance, for every 10,000 tons of compost used annually by these businesses, 18 full-time equivalent jobs can be sustained.

• Compost reduces growing costs for farmers. A blanket of compost used to re-seed land grows vegetation faster and cheaper than more mainstream methods.  

• Compost provides modest nutrient additions to the soil to reduce operating costs like fertilizer purchases while benefiting the environment through avoiding excess nutrient application.