[SustainableTompkins] composting dog waste

[Thomas Shelley]

Dear Friends--I thought this was interesting article (abstract only) and a 
good follow up to our discussion of composting cat litter.  I will have a 
more detailed report on the kitty litter compost project in a future 
post.  FYI, if you haven't seen the article in the GreenStar newsletter it 
is at:

http://www.greenstar.coop/greenleaf/all-greenleaf-articles/the-straight-poop-on-kitty-litter.html 


Take care.  Tom

Design, Testing and Implementation of a Large-Scale Urban Dog Waste 
Composting Program

Compost Science & Utilization, (2007), Vol. 15, No. 4, 237-242

Leah Nemiroff(1)* and Judith Patterson(2)
(1) Dept. of Biology and Science College, Concordia University, Montreal, 
Québec, Canada
*Now at Dept. of Biology, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
(2) Environmental Science Programme, Dept. of Geography, Planning and 
Environment,
Concordia University, Montreal, Québec, Canada

In Montreal, Québec, many dogs are exercised in fenced-in runs in parks. 
Consequently, these dog parks are a high-density source of large amounts of 
dog waste, which is typically collected by the owner in a plastic bag and 
deposited in the municipal garbage. In 2004, an experimental large-scale 
dog waste composting programme was initiated at the Notre-Dame-de-Grâce 
(NDG) dog run in Montreal, Québec. Dog waste was collected with plastic 
shovels, deposited into compost bins, and layered with sawdust. In two 
months, a total of 213kg (470 lbs) of dog waste was collected and 
composted, along with 33kg (72 lbs) of donated sawdust, in two research 
compost bins. After a year of incubation, the two bins produced 179kg (394 
lbs) of compost. Temperatures in the research bins peaked between 40°C and 
55°C but were not maintained long enough for conclusive elimination of 
pathogens. Participation by dog run users during the trial project was 
enthusiastic, and full-scale dog waste composting has now been implemented 
at the dog run, with nine bins being filled over a 12 month period. On an 
annual basis, this composting programme diverts almost a ton of dog waste 
(approximately 959kg (2,115 lbs), over 130kg (300 lbs) of sawdust, and at 
least 7000 plastic bags from Montreal's landfill site, and produces about 
770kg (1,700 lbs) of compost annually.

Tom Shelley
118 E. Court St.
Ithaca, NY 14850
607 342-0864
tjs1 at cornell.edu
http://www.myspace.com/99319958
P I thank you for printing this e-mail only if it is necessary

"Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present 
without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own 
needs."

The World Commission on Environment and Development,
Gro Harlem Brundtland
Our Common Future, Oxford University Press, 1987

MY NOTE:  Sustainable development does not mean "sustainable growth" as 
growth per se is not sustainable.  And the term "sustainable" has to mean 
"for a very long time" (A. Bartlett).

"The frog does not drink up the pond in which he lives."        Sioux proverb