Composting is the process through which fermentation breaks down organic fibres converting them into humus. Humus is the rich matter formed from the decomposition of dead animals and plants. A compost pile will act in the same way as organic material breaking down on a forest floor.

There are three stages to the decomposition of organic materials. During the first stage, degradation, the organic materials are broken down as microorganisms consume proteins and carbohydrates within the pile. As these microorganisms multiply, they create energy in the form of heat. In the second stage, the conversion phase, humus is produced. During this second phase, activity takes place at a lower temperature. In the third phase or curing phase, activity from microorganisms is at a minimum. After these chemical and physical phases of breakdown, compost is what remains.

Composting has long been valued by gardeners for its soil enriching qualities, but it is not only gardeners who can benefit from composting. Along with recycling, one way to drastically cut down on waste from the household is to start a compost. With the new millennium upon us, the issue of waste disposal approaching a crisis all over the world. Landfills are at full capacity and with development as it is, it is unlikely that land will be targeted for new dumping sites. It is estimated that one third of waste going into landfills is organic waste from kitchens, animals and yards. Home owners and garden growers world wide are reducing trash amounts through composting and realising the benefits. Our family has been composting for four years. Not only does the compost material help our gardens to bloom beautifully, but it gives us satisfaction in returning something to the earth.

There is lots of information available on composting, in the form of books, and local nurseries can help one get started. Just a few suggestions: keep the compost pile in an area that is easily accessible, otherwise it is tempting to just throw away useful organic matter. For added convenience, keep a Tupperware container in the kitchen to put kitchen scraps in. Vegetable and fruit rinds, parings, coffee grounds, nut shells, milk, peanut shells, fish scraps -- anything organic that does not contain oil, can be placed in this container. Once a day the contents are added to the compost pile. These kitchen scraps can be combined with manure, grass clippings, and sea weed.

When our beaches are full of Sargasso, this seaweed, when rinsed and left to dry, makes an excellent addition to any compost pile, as do wood chips, rotten wood, leaves, cleanings from bird cages, hay, hair and grass clippings.

On an island as small as Bermuda, we have to be very careful how we dispose of our waste. Why not take our kitchen scraps and other organic waste and put it back into the earth? Driving along Bermuda's roads looking at fields of rich brown soil one would think that Bermuda's soil is quite fertile, but, in fact it is not. Our soil is very porous and this means that minerals are easily washed away leaving the soil infertile. Over time Bermuda's soil continues to deplete and decay, losing its fertility. Not only is our soil porous, but there is not much of it. The soil layer is very thin, and instead of having a nice thick layer of subsoil beneath it, the soil rests on limestone rock.

Jessica Riederer is a Bermudian who works as a dolphin trainer at DolphinQuest. Her interests have centred around the natural world, having spent the majority of her life working with animals of some sort. When not at work, she spends a lot of time helping her parents in the garden.

For help in setting up your own compost pile at home or school, contact Jane Brett, Waste Education Officer at the Ministry of Works -- 297-7856.