Matthew Mammoser

M EMORANDUM
Date: 06/12/14
To: Father Holtschneider, DePaul University
From: Matthew P. Mammoser
Subject: Recommendation Report: University Composting

I have attached my completion report for my search into I,plementing the use of
composting at DePaul University. I have completed the research tasks first outlines in
my proposal submmited on April 17th, 2012: Researching composting methods, the
benefits of composting, and the actual implementation of composting at a university.
Since a large number of other univiersities have implemented similar programs, I
applied much of their data in my report.
First, I researched the different methods of composting to see how effective these were.
I was also interested in seeing which of these methods would be most useful for a large
scale university like DePaul. Next, I researched the benefits of composting. These
benefits include the specific benefits to the organization as well as the benefits this has
for the environment. Lastly, I studied many of the similar programs that exist at other
universities. Based on the data I have collected and analyzed, I highly recommend that
DePaul go through with building a composter. This will help significantly reduce the
amount waste produced by DePaul University. This will help DePaul stand out as an
environmentally conscious university.
I appreciate being given the chance to research options for improving DePauls
environmental influence. I look forward to similar projects in the future. If you possess
any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact Matt M. Mammoser at
MMammoser7@DePaul.edu

Matthew Mammoser

Recommendation Report: Community

Gardens
Prepared For: City of Chicago Environmental Department
Prepared By: Adi Z. Catnap
Date: 06/12/14

Matthew Mammoser

Executive Summary
Urban sustainability is exactly what its name implies. It is living such a fashion as to be
sustainable over the long term. This is mainly achieved by using renewable resources in
a coordinated fashion to prevent depleting them, and caring for the surrounding
environment to prevent damaging it. Particularly in recent years, more and more cities
have taken an interest in being sustainable as knowledge of climate change has
increased. Installing a composting station at DePaul would help DePaul do its part to
increase the sustainability of Chicago by reducing waste production.
Our cities were originally created in an age of exploitation when we had no concept of
limited world resources. We did not even consider the concept that oil, coal, and other
natural resources may be limited. Likewise, we did not consider the extent of the waste
produced by cities or the space needed to store it. In order to make communities more
sustainable now requires extensive effort to rebuild our infrastructure in such a manner
as to support sustainability. One method for doing so is to increase composting. Many
people are uninformed on how simple and beneficial composting can be. This prevents
them from making use of it in their own lives to help with their gardens, or simply to
reduce their environmental footprint.
I explored a number of composting systems and concluded that given the amount of
compostable waste DePaul produces, they are likely best suited to choose the three bin
system. This allows you to have up to three separate loads of compost going at the
same time, which would allow DePaul to keep up with its extensive trash production.
In addition, producing your own compost has a number of benefits. It is generally
cheaper in the long run than shipping your compost to another organization. Also, the
compost produced by the operation can be used for a number of different purposes. It
can be used to grow a garden which can produce food for the university. The food waste
from this garden can then be composted. It can also help by providing free compost for
DePaul landscaping around campus. Lastly, excess compost may be sold for a profit.

Matthew Mammoser

Introduction
On April 17th, 2014, I received permission to move forward on my proposal to study the
benefits of composting for DePaul University. This report contains the summation of my
study. Specifically, I researched the different methods of composting and which of these
methods would apply most beneficially to DePaul. I also research significant material on
the economic, environmental and academic benefits of these practices.
The basic problem is that humans produce an exorbitant amount of trash every year.
While it is unfeasible to attempt to curtain the activities of every human on Earth, or
even in the city of Chicago it would be wise and entirely possible to help reduce the
waste production of DePaul University. Since DePaul has a heavily utilized student
cafeteria they produces extensive amounts of food waste which could easily be
composted. Allowing access to compost bins in university housing could further
increase DePauls sustainability.
In order to discover how DePaul might tackle this issue I began to research various
methods for composting. One of the most popular methods is worm composting,
wherein a colony of worms help recycle the bioorganic material. The problem with this is
these are low volume bins generally designed for a single household or apartment.
Because DePaul produces thousands of pounds of food waste every week using these
small containers simply wouldnt be practical. I began to search for methods used by
other universities who have successfully implemented composting projects on their own
campuses. Most of them use the three bin method. This uses three separate bins all in
various stages of production to constantly produce a steady supply of compost. This
compost can then be used for a variety of purposes ranging from use in gardens to sale.
In addition, many of these programs are exceptionally popular on college campuses
where environmentalism is strong. They also provide an opportunity for students in
doctrines such as environmental science to actually experience hands on work related
to their discipline.

Matthew Mammoser

Research Methods
My main goal was to find a method of composting that DePaul would be able to use
given its extensive food waste production, and secondly to ensure that this process
would provide a useful return on investment to that end. To begin with I performed the
following research:
1. I studied composting techniques related to those used both by individuals and large
organizations to determine the best method for DePaul to proceed:
I studied the methods provided by a number of environmental websites, most
notably the EPA. This contained extensive information, including over 100 pages of
documents on composting specifically related to universities and other large
organizations.
2. I researched the technique DePaul would need to successfully execute composting
process:
As I noted before, I was specifically concerned about the raw volume of waste a
university like DePaul produces. The three bin system is the most feasible method
for such a large amount of waste as it allows the constant production of compost and
can be built to large specifications as necessary. While worm composting is simpler
and preferred by a large number of people it simple cannot keep pace with the
tremendous volume of waste produced by large scale organization like DePaul.
These organization produce tremendous food waste from things like their cafeteria,
making it difficult for them to compost all of it.
3. I examined the cases where other universities had implemented composting
programs:
Specifically I wanted to see how difficult these universities had put their programs to
use and whether or not the programs had been useful and effective for these
universities. To that end I went looking for a number of universities who had
implemented composting systems, successful or otherwise. I was eager to ensure
that this composting function would be a useful gain for DePaul and help them
improve their ecological impact, rather than simply being an impractical drain of their
resources.
4. I researched the various benefits of composting for the university:
Basically, I was studying a way to make composting beneficially to the university,
rather than just a chore they have to complete to keep their students happy. To that
end I spent a significant amount of time researching the expense of composting
versus trash disposal, the advantages of possessing your own composting unit, and
the precise benefits of producing compost. I discovered the advantages of this are
numerous and varied and often lead to further advantages with a little bit more work.

Matthew Mammoser

Results
1. Researching Composting Techniques
There are a variety of different composting methods. The most popular amongst
individuals is worm composting or vermiculture. In this model you dump your waste
into a colony containing a population of red worms. These worms love to eat food
waste. They will go through your trash, devouring it and after they are finished they
will exude small nutrient filled packets. Worm compost is extremely popular and is
the first choice of many farmers and gardeners. Sadly it is a slow moving process
and is not applicable to a large scale organization like DePaul which produces
thousands of pounds of food waste every day. The preferred method for such a
large organization is known as the three bin system. This method uses three
separate compost bins which are all in various stages of composting to allow the
user to be constantly composting waste and receiving completed compost. Unlike
vermiculture this method does not use earthworms, but instead allows the bacteria
in the soil to break it down naturally. To further aid and ease this process most three
bin composters include an aeration system. The advantage of this is that removes
the need for the compost pile to flipped periodically to expose it to the necessary
oxygen. The three bins constant flow works essentially like this. To begin you would
fill up the first compost bin. After it was full you would begin filling the second one
while allowing the first one to aerate, slowly composting its material. After the
second bin is full you would move on to aerating the second one, while filling the
third. By the time the third bin is full the first bin will be done composting and you will
be able to remove the compost from it and put in new waste to continue the
process. This process is most useful to a large organization because it has a
constant turnover ratio while allowing a constant cycle of composting. In addition
these structures are relatively cheap and simple to won and operate while providing
significant advantage and convenience to their owner.

Figure 1 A three bin composter.

Matthew Mammoser

2. Researching Other universities

During my research I came across a number of other universities who had
implemented composting projects of their own. I was interested in finding out how
these projects went for them because they can be used as a baseline for DePauls
own activity in this area. While searching through resource materials I came across
two documents which detail the composting endeavors of two specific universities.
These two are LaFayette college and St. Johns University. In both cases they
managed to successfully create a composting system capable of keeping up with
their waste demands. In addition, they received significant help and support from
their own student body, which impressed upon them the popularity of the green
movement on college campuses.

Results
1. The various benefits of composting
Environmental Benefits: One of the major benefits of composting is the
reduction in the amount of trash sent to landfills. As seen below almost
2/3rds(63%) of this trash can be recycled in some sense. These materials
are food scraps, yard trimmings, wood, and paper. Of these only paper is not
truly compostable, which means that 29.9% of this material is compostable.
DePaul produces tremendous amounts of food waste, roughly equal to
12,000 lbs. per week. By composting we could remove this waste from its
place in our landfills, clearing up desperately needed room for materials
which cannot be composted. This especially important because of the
number of people who fail to recycle easily recyclable materials. As you can
see above, less than half of materials that could be recycled are actually
recycled. By using composting instead of just sending this way to a land fill
7

Matthew Mammoser

will help DePaul do its part to help the environment. DePaul could even
enhance this benefit. One university supplied their students at on university
housing with 1 gallon buckets or containers made of recycled milk jugs.

Residents could fill these with compostable materials, then transport them to
the university landfill in order to do their part with regards to composting. The
other benefit of this is that establishing a composter allows us to create what
the EPA has entitled a circle of sustainability. Basically the use of a
composter produces compost. This compost can then be used as soil for
gardens and landscaping around DePaul university. This could be used to
grow fresh fruit and vegetables which can then be sold at the Student Center
for reduced price. Then, one all of these materials are used up the left over
waste can be composted, thus creating a circle that feeds into itself.

The Economic Benefits of Composting: Not only is composting

enviromentally friendly, but in the long run it may help DePaul economically.
Using your own onsite composting facilities is generally cheaper and easier
than paying to ship this material to an offsite producer. By establishing our
own composter we would not have to pay others to produce our compost, but
could instead make use of our own onsite composter at no expense save for
operating costs. In addition, by producing its own compost DePaul would
never need to buy any for gardening purposes. DePaul makes a significant
effort to make its campus look pleasing and inviting to guests. This involves
the use of a siginificant amount of gardening and landscaping. By having our
own composter DePaul would be able to produce significant amounts of
8

Matthew Mammoser

compost and would likely not need to buy compost from outside sources.
This could lead to a significant cut in our gardening budget, which could
benefit DePaul greatly. This benefit would be especially cogent if DePaul
chose to establish a vegatable garden or something similar, as the composter
could feed the garden soil as the garden feeds the composter waste, thus
creating the above detailed circle of sustainability. Lastly, excess compost
can be sold for a profit. Compost is an extremely popular product for those
looking to work on a home garden or amongst farmers and goes for $10-$40
per bag depending on the quality. By selling this material its possible DePaul
could turn a profit which would allow the composter to finance itself.

Academic Benefits: The last group of benefits is the academic benefits that
DePaul could glean from creating a composter. Specifically, by having a
composter on sight it would allow DePaul to give first person, hands on
experience with real environmental activities. This could be added to these
teaching disciplines this making these majors more competitively attractive to
people looking to go into this field. In addition, environmentalism is extremely
popular amongst the college age demographic, which means that being
environmentally friendly is a boon when college recruiting comes around. I
also means that some portions of composting may be passed off on to the
student body, thus reducing the labor cost for composting. Lastly, by
composting DePaul would be showing that it has an interest in preserving the
Earth which puts for an overall more positive public image.

Conclusions
There is are significant benefits to running your own composting. A number of other
universities have already successfully executed similar plans. These techniques have
worked for them very well and can work for DePaul. Establishing these composters
would allow DePaul to be more environmentally friendly and appeal more readily to
college students and organizations looking for a University which is friendly to the
environment,
9

Matthew Mammoser

Recommendations
I recommend that DePaul construct a composter in order to reduce its environmental
impact. The additional benefits granted by this practice more than make up for the effort
necessary to maintain this structure. DePaul would gain the resources necessary to
create a number of other environmentally friendly products which could further boost
their green image. In addition excess soil could be sold to other parties for an overall
profit. The inclusion of onsite composting would allow DePaul to provide first hand
experiences to environmental majors attending our school. This would make us more
attractive relative to other competing schools when it comes to attracting college
students. Lastly, it would increase DePauls overall public appeal by sending the
message that we care about the environment.

10