Future Roots Locally Grown Guide - Catalog - Page 78
STUDENT-LED COMPOSTING
O
ver the past several years, Future Roots has been collaborating with schools
throughout Blaine County to launch lunchtime composting initiatives. Each
program is optimized and designed around unique lunch schedules and student
culture. Food waste is diverted from Milner Butte Landfill to Winn’s Compost out Ohio
Gulch, with transportation provided by Clear Creek Disposal.
Hailey Elementary was the first school
to launch in the spring of 2023. “Composting has become an integral part
of our school culture, though it wasn’t
an immediate buy-in from everyone.
To encourage participation, we began
weighing our compost daily and graphing the results, giving students a clear
visual of how much food waste was
being diverted from the trash each
day, week, and month. This hands-on
approach made a significant impact,
increasing student awareness and
engagement,” says Sarah Polk, the lead
teacher on the project.
By June of 2025, Hailey Elementary will
have diverted approximately 12,500
pounds of food waste from the landfill,
which is consistent with district-wide
averages of 14-16 pounds of food waste,
per student, per school year. Wood River
Middle School was the second school
to launch in spring of 2024, and many
incoming 6th graders remember composting routines from their time at Hailey Elementary.
Hemingway STEAM School is the most recent BCSD school to participate in launching a
composting initiative, starting in April of 2025. In addition to food waste pick-up, Hemingway
students will also have a 106-gallon composting tumbler system on site, and will be able to test
and observe composting in real time.
Recent studies have shown that each pound of food waste in landfills creates an average of 3.8
pounds of carbon and methane emissions (EPA). With three schools participating, this amounts
to over 75,000 pounds of emissions avoided per school year. Most importantly, these initiatives foster stewardship of our food system, community, and planet, and empower students to
engage in everyday climate action.
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