New Student-Led Composting System At HCPSS Buildings Helps Reduce Waste

HOWARD COUNTY, MD — A new composting program implemented at several Howard County Public School System buildings has helped reduce food waste.

With funding from the Maryland State Department of Education’s School Waste Reduction and Composting Grant, work began in December 2023 to set up a system that would compost the schools' compostable lunch trays and help with food waste.

“The fact that this grant is student-led makes it really unique. While staff are there to provide guidance and support, it’s really up to students to come up with a plan to educate the school community about food waste and composting, and to engage the community in implementing that plan,” HCPSS Grants Administrator Annette Bartlett said.

Bartlett, 2023-2024 Student Member of the Board of Education Lamia Ayaz and other students submitted a grant application and now, there are separate bins set up for trash, compost and recycling at numerous HCPSS schools.

“Our overarching goal was to bring forth a student-led initiative with three main tenets: the introduction of share tables (locations where students can place uneaten, whole food items that they do not wish to eat, and other students can take them), development of a robust composting program, and education of students on the importance of a reduction in food waste," Ayaz said. “On our first day of implementation, we filled all four of our 65-gallon bins before the lunch shifts were even over, and students were expressing interest and stopping to read the information about our share table."

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