Home composting of biodegradable waste in Taurage region

The separate composting of biodegradable waste, generated by families living in individual houses. The planned technology comprises the separate composting of biodegradable waste (BW), generated by a family living in an individual house, and the use of compost on site (in the same land parcel). A particularity of the Taurage region, compared with the majority of other regions in Lithuania, is the large share of the population living in houses rather than flats (more than 54%). Composting will be carried out according to the "Recommendations for Good Practice", prepared by the project implementer and agreed with the project developer. The separated BW will be digested in individual composters, and the end product (compost) will be used for gardening on site and for potted flowers. The innovativeness of the pilot project includes the use of biotechnological methods (probiotic compositions) in addition to traditional home-composting. A BW home composting experiment was carried out during summer 2012, aiming to evaluate different technical, climate and other conditions, which impact on the composting process.

The results of experiments show that about 5,000 units of composting boxes are necessary for 2,100 t/y of BW composting in towns on the land belonging to individual houses. The optimal size for a composting box is 800 l – 1 m³ (6 ares, 3–4 persons). The results of laboratory analysis of samples from various compost compositions show that one cycle of home composting in Lithuania, when traditional composting methods are applied, is approx. 5–6 months during a warm period. The use of probiotic compositions allows a reduction in the composting period up to 3–4 months. In any case, the composting period depends on compost composition (proper C : N proportion), BW moisture content and weather conditions.

Expected outcome

Improvement of waste management system:
Diversion from landfill of more than 2,000 t/y of green biodegradable waste generated by households in the Taurage region. A social aspect of this project is the reduction in the cost of municipal waste management for an individual household by 20%.