For
many years the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo has been searching for composting
opportunities in an effort to resolve the question…What do they do with all the
poop? As you can imagine we have
literally tons of organic material, or in other words poop, which can be
composted. In the summer of 2011 Bestway
Disposal announced it had started a composting sector for commercial businesses
and after considering all aspects of what a disposal transition would mean for
the Zoo we decided to join the movement.
What
is composting? It is nature’s way of
processing and recycling decomposed organic material and returning the
nutrients from organic material back into the ground. Composting creates a rick, dark soil fit for
growing just about anything. Compost
helps reduce pest problems which ultimately reduces your use of pesticides;
diverts material from landfills; it improves moisture retention in the soil;
prevents the need to purchase soil conditioners; increases the nutrient levels
in the plants you are growing and consuming; allows for children to learn about
the cycle of life…the benefits are endless.
So
far Cheyenne Mountain Zoo has started composting in African Rift Valley (ARV)
and Elephants. By composting in ARV and
Elephants we have eliminated all but one of our regular consumable waste bins
along the
You
may ask yourself, how can you make a difference? Well, composting is easy. All you need is a relatively flat location, a
pile of organic waste to include nitrogen and carbon, water and a way to rotate
or turn the pile. For additional details
on how to compost please visit websites on composting practices, speak with
representatives at your local nursery, call your disposal service or chat with
a landscaping company.
The
Cheyenne Mountain Zoo continues to strive for sustainability through
conservation, recycling, composting and education. Please visit our website to learn more about
our conservation efforts.
Written by: Mindy Carney
Written by: Mindy Carney
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