Composting is Here!

Thanks to Bellevue College’s Student Environmental and Sustainability Fund (SESF), the BC Cafeteria will start a very exciting composting pilot project! We are reaching out to you in hopes that you will celebrate with us and educate the students about the importance of composting and reducing our waste. 

All food containers, cups, lids and, of course, food itself can now be diverted from the landfill by making into compost. We have four receptacles with compartments for composting, recycling, and landfill/waste in the cafeteria with clear labels and pictures above each bin for students to easily distinguish what goes where. This is beneficial for students to learn about composting, to practice sustainable living through simple actions, and to see how these simple acts can help sustain our earth for future generations. 

 

The major goal of composting is to reduce the amount of solid waste our campus generates. By composting organic waste, we are returning nutrients back into the soil in order for the cycle of life to continue instead of throwing them into the landfill where all the garbage typically goes. 

Finished compost looks like soil, dark brown and crumbly, and smells like a crisp forest floor. Not only does it smell great, but it also has the advantage of being a useful natural fertilizer for both farming and gardening and is ultimately more environmentally friendly than synthetic fertilizers.  This year, the compost that BC produces will be picked up by Cedar Grove Composting, the Pacific Northwest’s leading organic recycling company.

 

Thank you all for your support and for being educators and advocates for our environment. We all appreciate your support in making this pilot project a success!