I'm in the corporate world and my corporation ships many tons of trash to the landfill each year. One of our goals in the next few years is to reduce our land fill waste by 25%. I'm talking about a facility that employs 15,000 to 20,000 people at one site. It has bothered me that the paper towel waste from restrooms accounts for such a high percentage (by volume) of our landfill destined waste. Since I raise worms myself and use some paper products in the mix, I've often wondered if there is any research showing vermicomposting as a viable means to process industial volumes of paper waste. So, my primary question is: Can vermicomposting be used to process waste where the food/bedding is a very high percentage of already moist paper towels? We have cafeterias on-site that may provide some food waste but, my suspicion is that there wouldn't be enough food variety and microbial activity to sustain a worm population. Has anyone seen vermicoposting used in an industrial setting such as this?

I think it could be done. However, your company would have to make a division just for the vermicomposting.
They would have to have a site for this where there is water available. It would take a full time staff to run and I don't see any return for the company. The higher ups would have to be very green minded to want to go that route. The possible return would be worm casting to sell. That would be down the road though.
With the profit at any cost mentally that prevails in today's market place I just don't think any company would consider to take on such a task. The old way of life that I grew up on is no longer out there, where companies were more proud of their service. It seems to be more of a greed based system that prevails now.

Digger

I think it could be done. However, your company would have to make a division just for the vermicomposting.
They would have to have a site for this where there is water available. It would take a full time staff to run and I don't see any return for the company. The higher ups would have to be very green minded to want to go that route. The possible return would be worm casting to sell. That would be down the road though.
With the profit at any cost mentally that prevails in today's market place I just don't think any company would consider to take on such a task. The old way of life that I grew up on is no longer out there, where companies were more proud of their service. It seems to be more of a greed based system that prevails now.

Digger

Thanks for the insight; my company is "green" minded and has an entire department that is dedicated to environmental issues. I'm curious if there are any other companies or industries that utilize vermicomposting to process large amounts of paper waste. Do worms require a diverse diet? Is there enough biological activity in decomposing paper products to sustain a worm populaton?

RaptorTexas wrote:

QUOTE:
Thanks for the insight; my company is "green" minded and has an entire department that is dedicated to environmental issues. I'm curious if there are any other companies or industries that utilize vermicomposting to process large amounts of paper waste. Do worms require a diverse diet? Is there enough biological activity in decomposing paper products to sustain a worm populaton?

Add some food waste from the cafeteria and you have a great combinationjust be sure to shread the paper.Is there room on the company property to compost / process this material outside

Sorry for the delayed response; I've been out of town. Yes, there is room outside. However, the plant is in north Texas and I suspect the summer temperatures get too hot for worms as I have experienced in my own worm beds. I have three bins in a barn each about 8 ft. by 2 ft. and have noticed a huge reduction in their casting output in the summer and winter months. Therefore, I was assuming that an indoor/controlled environment would be more reliable.

I guess the biggest concern is being able to sustain a worm population where the food material is 80 percent restroom paper towel waste.