Darien High starts food scrap composting program
DARIEN — As Earth Day approaches, many are reminded how to protect the planet and its resources.
For one Darien High club, every day is Earth Day. The school’s Ecocitizens club recently began a composting program which collects food scraps from students in the cafeteria during lunch and then turns that waste into nutrient-dense compost.
Junior Saskia Zimmerman, a club member, said she first got the idea to bring composting to Darien High after seeing a similar program in place at Wilton High School while visiting for a math competition.
Zimmerman said she wanted to come up with something that would produce sustainable change after being prompted by a summer course. The composting program fit that goal, and she proposed it to her fellow club members.
The composting program is starting on a smaller scale, Zimmerman said. Currently they are using a composter they have on campus that is only able to accept certain types of organic waste.
Zimmerman said she worked with the Zero Waste club at Staples High School in Westport which helped guide her in Darien’s program.
She said the club hopes to ramp up to a more industrial compost collector that would accept a lot more in future years.
One challenge the club faces is that some weren’t entirely sure what the effort entailed.
“I think people were kind of confused at first
about what can go in and what can’t, and what what composting was really about,” Zimmerman said.
To that end, the Ecocitizens club created a video explaining what composting was and what the purpose of the program was.
Some students work the lunchroom areas to explain to fellow students what can be composted.
“They are really committed to this. Seeing the group helping their peers understand is really laying the groundwork for the future, which is tremendous,” said club moderator Kathleen Gibson.
Gibson said the school and district staff have been
extremely supportive. She noted how the pandemic made starting a new initiative a bit of a challenge but said the kids were undeterred.
The video also shows alternative options for students who are remote learning or would like to do the composting program at home.
The Ecocitizens club has several other initiatives planned, including making a rain garden and native plants that help prevent erosion.
In May, the club intends to share the compost with the school’s Garden Club as well as the Unity Garden at Person-to-Person.