Who Knew? Upcycling the Dog Poo
by Joanna M. Foster
April 4, 2012http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/04/04/who-knew-upcycling-the-dog-poo/
This is an example of a composting plant, where all of the fertilizer is processed.
Summary: I know this article sounds a little crazy, but if you think about it, it makes so much sense. In Ithaca, NY, a project was started in 2009. Their mission was to use their local dog part as a way to help the environment, as suggested by many citizens. The dog park obviously was a place for dogs to "go", which could be used for compost. They originally thought of selling the collected compost if it was free of pathogens. Normally, dog waste would be put into plastic bags, and often left on the streets, which end up as litter or in landfills. It is also a public health and environmental risk if it was left on the streets. So, the park provided corn-based compostable bags for the locals to use, and the waste was picked up weekly by a local composting company to be processed and composted. In just 18 months, 12 tons of of compost was produced! Although a lot, they didn't feel it was enough to sell, but it was found that the new compost was completely pathogen free! The park used the compost for fertilizer to plant trees on Earth day this year. Donations keep this park poo project up and running, needing $5,000 annually for the poo bags and the cost of the compost labor. This revolution is becoming public and widely known worldwide!
Reflection: I thought this was such an interesting, relatable article. I take my dog to the dog park fairly often, and I think that our local park should start a project like this. I think our locals would definitely be up for fundraising and donating to something like this. There is a dog park in Horsham, and maybe the compost made from the park could go hand and hand with the Jarrett Nature Center. It would be great to use this healthy fertilizer on the trees and pants there. I also was extremely surprised that the lb tests showed that the compost was pathogen-free, considering where it was coming from. This just goes to show how something that is so common and seemingly useless can start and green revolution. I also never though about how just leaving dog poo on the streets could be so harmful. This idea is innovative, inexpensive, and safe!
Questions:
1) Would you originally think that the waste would be unsafe for use? Were you surprised to hear that it was safe?
2) Do you think that investing this type of idea would be worth it to our community?
3) How long does the processing and composting of this waste take?
4) What kind or environmental impacts can dog poo have other than taking up space in land fills?
Note: For the link above with the article, a video is also included at the bottom of the article! Feel free to watch :)
Opinion/Reflection
ReplyDeleteThis is such a good idea? It sounds crazy and gross at first, but now I look at is as a very innovative idea. I think this has the potential to change local dog parks everywhere. When you think about it this dog poo project, it has some great environmental impacts. Reading this made me think of our stream quality lab and the fecal coliform test. If this dog idea became more common in our area, the fecal coliform might less to be lower. This impacts me because the poo wouldn't be ending up in streams and it may be better than regular compost. I really hope this trend of dog poo bags for composting catches on!
Questions
1) No, I think the waste would be safe to use. The article says it contains less pathogen which makes the compost better. When you think about it people use mulch on their flowers gardens and don't seem to mind, so what would the difference be. I was surprised to hear that it was safe. I would much rather use safe compost, than compost that is more contaminated no matter what it is made of!
Opinion/Reflection:
ReplyDeleteOh my my my!!! At first, this seemeed like a gross and odd article. However, as I read more of the article, I discovered how interesting and clever the idea was. Who would have thought of picking up dog waste with corn-based compostable bags to turn into pathogen free compost. This is so awesome! Fresh, new ideas like this are turning our world into an eco friendly place, and makes it a better place to live. I could have never come up with a plan so clever like this, but I think it is so smart and I can relate it to my own life. I have two dogs, and I must get some of those wonderful corn-based compostable bags to pick up their waste! I hope people all over the world start to pick up their pets' poo with these eco friendly bags and slowly turn our world into a better place.
Question: #2: Oh yes! I definetly think this idea would be worth it. Better compost that is pathogen free and would make a large impact in our community. It may seem like a dumb and small thing, (picking up dog waste) but with these eco friendly bags, they can really go a long way and make a difference!
opinion/reflection
ReplyDeleteAhhh that's great!! I actually did kind of laugh at this because that is definitely a creative way to be environmentally friendly! I never knew dog poo could be such a healthy thing for our environment. It would be awesome if the dog park in Horsham did this because even though I don't go there often with my dog, I would start taking him a lot more often. Just knowing that my dog would be contributing to helping the environment, maybe not directly but in the long run he would help grow plants! This article was really twisted, but I have to give it to the people who thought of this for innovating such an amazing idea!
More questions
1.) How many people do you think go to this park?
2.) Are there any negative effects of this?
3.) Do you think more people started going to the dog park just because they have this new awesome idea of being environmental friendly?