The Home Composter in the Fight Against Global Warming

I was visiting my parents and noticed they had a small container in their kitchen for collecting biodegradable waste — vegetable and fruit peels, tea bags, coffee grounds (loose, not capsules). Instead of throwing these products away, they were adding them to a home composter for organic waste. This simple device transforms them into nutrient-rich fertiliser for plants while helping to reduce harmful emissions.

In nature, nothing goes to waste — everything passes through a natural cycle of transformation. The processes by which matter breaks down into its components and becomes new matter are simply ingeniously designed. As a result, everything works in perfect synchrony, without waste, without pollution.

Therefore, our task as a society is to get as close as possible to this natural ideal. In other words, we need to create a system where the things we discard find new purpose, instead of becoming a source of environmental pollution.

The Home Composter in Defence of the Planet

Every year, households worldwide generate billions of tonnes of organic waste. When these biodegradable materials end up in landfills or incinerators, they release significant amounts of methane and carbon dioxide into the atmosphere — gases that drive global warming.

Moreover, the scale of the problem is impressive — organic food waste represents almost one third of household waste. According to the European Commission, food waste accounts for approximately 16% of total emissions from the EU food system. Furthermore, on a global scale, food loss and waste generate around 8% of all human-caused emissions annually, according to the UN.

Global Benefits of a Home Composter

Reducing Your Carbon Footprint

Home composting reduces greenhouse gas emissions in several ways. First, it prevents organic waste from decomposing in the anaerobic environment of landfills, where methane forms — a gas 25 times more potent than CO2 in terms of global warming. Second, a composter transforms organic matter into compost — a natural fertiliser for plants and gardening. As a result, this reduces the need for chemical fertilisers, whose production consumes enormous amounts of energy.

Improving Soil Quality

A composter transforms organic waste into fertiliser that enriches soil with nutrients, improving its structure and water retention capacity. According to Zero Waste Europe, in 2018 collectors gathered only 34% of total biological waste in the EU, leaving 40 million tonnes of potential soil nutrients for disposal. Consequently, this represents a huge lost resource that could have enriched the earth and replaced chemical fertilisers.

Protecting Water Resources

Soil enriched with composter fertiliser retains moisture much more effectively. In fact, this reduces the need for watering by up to 30%. In an era of water crises in many regions, this benefit proves extremely important.

Economic Benefits

Households that use a composter reduce their waste volume by 30-50%. As a result, they pay lower costs for rubbish collection and treatment. Additionally, at municipal level, investments in composting infrastructure pay for themselves many times over through reduced landfill and waste management costs.

Educational Value

Composting teaches the younger generation responsibility towards the environment and understanding of natural cycles. Moreover, children who grow up in homes with a composter develop stronger environmental awareness and more sustainable habits.

European Experience: How Other Countries Are Tackling the Challenge

France: Mandatory Composting from 2024

From 1 January 2024, France requires all citizens to recycle organic waste under new compulsory composter regulations. With support from the government’s Green Fund, municipalities must provide residents with ways to sort biological waste. Consequently, households and businesses must dispose of organic matter either in a special small container for household waste or at a municipal collection point. Alternatively, they can compost at home.

In France, each person discards approximately 82 kg of compostable waste every year. After collection, processors convert the waste into biogas or compost to replace chemical fertilisers.

The EU Waste Framework Directive encourages biological waste collection, but does not set mandatory targets. However, many European countries have already introduced organic waste separation at municipal level.

(Source: ESGnews.bg)

The State of the Bio-waste System in Bulgaria

While composting is becoming mandatory practice at European level, Bulgaria still faces significant challenges in this area. According to No Waste Sofia, the separate collection system for bio-waste currently applies only to businesses, not to households.

For citizens: At present, citizens can only dispose of food waste in grey containers for mixed household waste. As a result, millions of tonnes of organic materials end up in landfills or incinerators each year, releasing harmful emissions into the atmosphere, instead of becoming a valuable resource.

For businesses: Schools, kindergartens, children’s kitchens, retail outlets, markets, restaurants, catering establishments and hotels must collect bio-waste and organic waste separately. They then hand it over to the Sofia Waste Treatment Municipal Enterprise or to a licensed waste company. Furthermore, these establishments must not mix organic waste with other waste and must hand it over for recycling.

The solution is in our hands: Until authorities establish a comprehensive system for collecting bio-waste from households, each of us can make a difference by investing in a personal composter for a greener future.

What Can You Compost?

Ideally, you should minimise all waste — including organic matter. Additionally, consuming, freezing or preserving food before its expiry date also helps reduce waste.

Suitable for composting:

• Leftover uneaten food
• Baked goods and dairy products
• Eggshells
• Fruits and vegetables and their peels
• Mouldy food
• Pet food
• Raw and cooked meat and fish (depending on composter type)
• Bones (depending on composter type)
• Tea and coffee grounds

Do not compost:

• Liquids
• Non-food products
• Packaging

The Way Forward

We increasingly witness how global warming brings catastrophic consequences — floods occur more frequently, alerting us that we must rethink our actions. However, the good news is that more and more people seek green alternatives and ways to live in harmony with nature. As a result, recycling habits and proper disposal of hazardous waste and electronics are becoming increasingly widespread.

Ultimately, using a composter in our homes brings us closer to the wisdom of nature, where everything has its place in the cycle of life and nothing goes to waste.