The Lagos Compost Revolution
The Lagos Compost Revolution
Laurie Barton and Rupert Harman, claim to be simple guys who enjoy growing vegetables and drinking a few beers. Still, they are on a mission to start a compost revolution in Lagos. We talked to the surf-mad duo to find out more.
Laurie Barton is a 38-year-old Australian from Melbourne. He originally came across the Algarve while he was travelling, making a group of friends he found a job that he enjoyed, managing the surf camp. He then met 37-year old Rupert Harman, Rupert had grown up in the Algarve and lives on a small farm near Bensafrim.
“After years of running a surf camp and frustratingly throwing away all of our organic waste, I teamed up with Rupert. After a couple of months of collecting organic waste from the hostel for compost and pig food, we began to understand just how much was being sent to landfill from Lagos every year. None of the restaurants or cafes in town were separating it, so we began offering a free pick-up service. We take fruit and vegetable scraps, coffee grinds, eggshells, cartons and anything compostable.”
Three times a week, the two eco-buddies pass by small companies and collect any buckets with waste in, leaving fresh buckets for the coming days. The service is completely free with the goal of making it as easy as possible for businesses to participate, and make a positive contribution towards the environment.
The restaurants and cafes they currently work with include, The Green Room, Nah Nah Bah, Beats and Burritos, Goji, G’s cafe, Coffee and Waves, Gorilla, Sunrays Kitchen as well as The Algarve Surf Camp and The Surf Experience. There are also a group of families, households and holiday rental apartments that have joined and use the drop-off and pick up point at the Algarve Surf Camp in Lagos.
Currently, Rupert has two pigs, Wilbur and Wifey, about 20 ducks, some chickens and Charlie, the dog. “We grow as much fruit and veg as we can, enough for us and some surplus to give away to friends. It is early days, and every year the yield and range of what grows in the garden is increasing as I learn more from our experience and the advice of other people. We are fortunate to have two great neighbours on either side of us, who have been farming their land for a lot longer, so I learn a lot from them as well.
We got a huge response from a lot of other local cafes and restaurants that wanted to get involved but, for the moment due to a lack of time, we have had to restrict the number of places we collect from.” Laurie explains: “We are working on a system that will allow us to take on more composters in the new year. All of these businesses and their staff have been great at committing to minimise their food waste and are enthusiastic about composting.”
All of the food waste is taken to Bensafrim, where it is transformed into compost. The piles are turned about once a week, in a line, so at the beginning of the chain is the new food waste, and at the end is healthy humus soil. Because of the heavy clay soil that we have in the Algarve, the more organic material you can put into it the better.
Rupert says: “It’s amazing how much the volume of the food waste decreases as it breaks down, this summer we were collecting on average 1500 litres of food waste each week, but after about three weeks of composting that will have already reduced by 50% and by the end of the process, about three months, there is around 10-15% of the original volume.”
They don’t sell any of the compost or produce, the compost revolution was started as an initiative to make use of organic waste that would otherwise end up in a landfill.
So why should we compost when it is so much easier to put it in our black bin bags? “If you compost your food waste and add it to the soil in your garden, it puts all of the moisture, nutrients and healthy stuff back into the earth, thereby creating a thriving environment for plants to grow. As opposed to sending it to Landfill where it sits mixed with plastic and other non-decomposable waste toxically producing methane,” explains Rupert.
The Compost compadres suggest that If you live in an apartment or don’t have much outdoor space, a fun way to start composting is with a worm farm. You can do this easily at home. “It’s amazing how quickly the worms turn your waste back into nutrient-rich soil, black gold for a farmer!” says Rupert.
Laurie adds: “The amount of waste being produced is a global problem, but we believe that change begins at a community level. Since starting this project and seeing the response from the Lagos community and surrounding villages, the majority of people living here care about and want to preserve the environment that we live in. Our belief is that by aiming for zero waste, creating localised waste management systems, and supporting local agriculture, Lagos can encourage other villages and communities to do the same.”
If anyone else has a small farm and would like to start their own Compost Revolution, Laurie and Rupert would be happy to share their experiences and help you to get started. Already in the new year, there will be a pick-up, drop off-site in the village of Sagres thanks to a local farmer who wants to build soil.
Do they have any big plans for the future? “We would love to see Lagos become a more environmentally friendly town. We still have a long way to go, but I think with a few small habit changes from the community it is definitely possible.”
For the moment they are happy picking up buckets, making some excellent compost, growing veggies and drinking a few beers.
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