Waste Reduction Highlight: In-Vessel Composting at Ohio University Ohio University is home to the largest in-vessel composting facility at any college or university in the nation thanks to a 2-ton per day composting system that was installed in 2009. In 2012, the university tripled the size of its facility by adding a second unit that can accept up to 4 tons of organic materials daily. This increase in composting capacity is significantly contributing to the overall progress of Benchmarks 5 and 7 of the Sustainability Plan.
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Facts about composting at Ohio University:
Food waste is collected from the Central Foods Facility and all Athens campus Dining Courts/Halls six days per week. Both pre-consumer food waste (kitchen scraps) and post-consumer food waste (waste generated by diners) is collected. It should be noted that Ohio University's kitchen preparation process is quite streamlined. Therefore, a significant portion of the weight collected comes from post-consumer waste. The organic food waste is brought to the compost facility and combined with bulking agents (wood chips from landscape waste are commonly used). It is then processed in the in-vessel systems for approximately 14 days. The in-vessel systems have 14 stainless steel trays situated on the bottom of the machine. Each day, the organic material moves one tray’s-length closer to the exit of the system. When organic material reaches the exit of the system, it is swept off the tray and pushed out of the system through a conveyor belt. The image to the right shows what this material looks like upon immediately exiting the system. After exiting the system, the partially processed material is then moved to “windrows” where they will cure for approximately 90 days. This product is a nutrient-rich organic material that is used as a soil amendment on the campus’ grounds.