What Happens to Blake’s Compost

Change Makers Corner

All around the school, you see them. In the hallways and in the lunchroom. Everywhere. Blue, green, & black bins. Students throw trash in them, and it disappears. But what really happens to the trash? What happens to the banana peel that you throw in that green bin, never to be seen again? This article will cover what happens to our waste, specifically our compost.

Blake started composting in 2010 when they applied for and received a grant from Hennepin County. The grant paid for trash, recycling, and compost bins around the school. Mr. Paterakis, an 8th grade science teacher, helped to start the compost system when it started in 2010.

Republic Services, a waste disposal company, takes Blake’s compost, trash, & recycling, and brings it to their facilities. Before they do that, though, they decide if our compost is compostable. If there are other things in the compost bin, such as ice cream wrappers and other plastics, the company can’t compost it, so they put it in the landfill. So, if you don’t pay attention, and put your wrapper in the compost, then none of the compost will get composted. Even if they don’t notice it, it will make it harder for the rest of the compost in their facilities to decompose. Blake has tried to solve this by minimizing the amount of things that are trash. Most of Blake’s objects are either reusable or compostable, including their silverware, cups, napkins & paper towels. That is why there are no trash cans, only compost bins, in the dining commons.

The stuff in the compost bin isn’t the only uneaten food in the building. Many fruits and vegetables aren’t thrown away, even if they are half-eaten or rotten. So, what happens to those? Dana Berg, Blake’s Director of Finance, owns a farm & corn maze. Most of the uneaten fruits and vegetables go to their pigs.

Bill Bock, the Food Service Director, says, “From Taher’s perspective, it has made our teams more aware of what is compostable, recyclable, and what actually goes to the landfill. It is an enormous effort where 100% effort is required by everyone for the program to be truly successful. We start by buying compostable plates, napkins, cups, and utensils for all of our catered events. We have bins throughout the kitchen marked and labeled at each station so every member of our team has access to the correct vessel. Since implementing the program, it really has become common practice for our team, Buildings and Grounds and our janitorial team to make sure everything goes as planned.”

That is what happens to Blake’s compost. The next time you throw something away, take a moment to think about where it’s going.

For more information, visit these websites:

● FreshAcresMN.com - Dana Berg’s Farm

● RepublicServices.com - The company that disposes of Blake’s waste

● BlakeSpectrum.org/Blog/2023/03/07/What-A-Waste - A spectrum article about Blake’s waste program

The Change Makers Club will put a section in each issue of the newspaper. The section will have a comic and article aiming to spread positive vibes throughout the community.