Kean's "Green Machine" To The Rescue

America generates approximately 31 million tons of food waste each year, most of which ends up in landfills. New Jersey is rapidly running out of landfill space. With a growing population and shrinking landfill space, what can be done to reduce the amount of food waste the world produces? So far, Kean University has made tremendous efforts to "Go Green". Its latest addition, the "Green Machine", is a composter that transforms food waste into compost that helps the soil gain nutrients to grow healthier, stronger, more resilient plants.
Dr. Nicholas Smith-Sebasto's system has helped Kean University recycle over 22,000 lbs of food waste into compost so far this year, well over the 50,000 lbs since the project began in February 2009. At a rate of 1,000 lbs of food per day, by the end of the academic year, the university will have turned 150,000 lbs of left over food into compost that can be used as fertilizer for the plants and flowers around campus. Dr. Smith-Sebasto designed features that greatly reduce the chances of the machine breaking.
Ricardo Addarich, a freshman majoring in sustainability science, says that working with the composter gives him an opportunity that one can not find anywhere else. "It's actually pretty amazing. To see them doing something on this campus and that something is actually being done, even if it's behind the scenes."
To make the compost, the food waste generated from the Upper Classman Residence Hall, the University Center, and the Cougar's Den is mixed with wood pellets in the mixer. The all-natural wood pellets are used to absorb excess moisture and to feed the microbes responsible for the breakdown of the food. Next, the mixture is transferred through the conveying auger to the vessel where it is turned into compost.
The process is simple but the effects are great. The whole process takes about five days. It is all natural and energy efficient, using about $4 of electricity a day. It uses no heating unit, though the inside of the machine is about 130 degrees Fahrenheit. Not only the does the composter produce a nutrient-rich amendment for the soil, it also cuts down the cost or garbage removal and fertilizer costs.