With the NSW state government moving towards a scrap tax for those of us who continue to send organics (especially food) to landfill we are moved to remind people of two solutions which could help solve this seemingly intractable problem while offering them free organic materials with which to grow some of their own food.
Worm farming and composting are the solutions and local, small scale action is best. Why? Because it means the materials are dealt with onsite at your home, school or workplace and the products (worm liquid, worm castings and compost itself) can be utilised immediately and constantly to fertilise your own foods.
How much space do you need? A family of four can worm farm most of its own fruit and vegie scraps in less than half a cubic metre or triple that space if you compost as well. Each week you will be producing around 2 litres of diluted worm juice; enough for a small backyard vegie plot of around 4 square metres which can supplement your food source up to 50% (with seasonal variability).
Every 3 months or so, once it is up and rolling (around 9 months from start up) you can be harvesting the bottom feeding tray for up to 20 litres of worm casting and baby worms for the garden to kick start the next season’s crop.
How much? SCRAP’s special on the three tiered Worm Cafe from Reln with 2000 of our best compost worms, a jute cover (for moisture and darkness) and a bag of dolomite to keep the farm moist will set you back just $140 (+ postage). See our Green Buys Catalogue to order.
SCRAP’s Sustainable Schools Program began in 2000 when a consortium of partners came together to offer the EcoSnapshot Day in which schools undertook 5 audits and surveys covering – Solid Waste, Energy, Water, Biodiversity and Materials Use and Management in one day resulting in a comprehensive benchmarking of their environmental performance and great hands-on education
Australia is full of it but we’re losing it fast through destruction of habitat. We need to find that balance between using resources for our needs while maintaining the right of other species to exist. This is at the core of sustainable living and it is on a head on course with our modern system
The driest continent on Earth other than Antarctica should have its act together on water, don’t you agree? Well despite our obvious failures, in some ways,we do and KISSS (Kapillary Irrigation Sub-Surface System is one of those areas where we have wins. The system can save at least half the water needed for irrigation and
