Rocket Composter Arrives in Chatham

A Rocket Composter ordered for Chatham High School recently arrived in the township, where it will remain in storage until it can be installed at the school.

The composter was purchased with a $25,000 grant through Sustainable Jersey, which Chatham Township won in September. The grant was funded by Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. About $20,000 of the grant money went toward purchasing the composter, while the rest of the money will go toward educational programs about composting.

Patricia Colington, a member of the Environment Commission of Chatham Township, came up with the idea and wrote the grant application for the "On-Site School Food Composting Program."

Once all the snow melts, a date will be set for the composter to be installed. Until then, Colington said that she could not reveal where the composter is located because it may jeopardize the warranty.

The Rocket is made by Accelerated Compost and is about the length of a lunch table. It will be kept at the high school, but food from the other five public schools will be trucked to the high school so it can be placed in the composter. The Rocket Composter takes 14 days to turn food waste into mulch, which will then be reused for the schools.

"Our goal is to eventually eliminate the 200 yards of mulch we have to buy for the schools," said John Cataldo, Supervisor of Buildings and Grounds for the District. But it's not about saving money on mulch. "It's about teaching kids how to recycle and create mulch," Cataldo said.

About $4,000 to $6,000 will be saved in mulching and landscape fees as a result of the composter's presence.

"It's seen as the next frontier in recycling and waste management," said Commission member Kathy Abbott at a Township Committee meeting last June.

Gerardo Soto of NATH Sustainable Solutions, which sells the Rocket Composters, said only four are in use in the U.S. and this will be the first one in a public school. Currently, he said, there are 260 Rockets being used worldwide.

"Chatham's education and on-site composting program will set the example for other municipalities, school districts, creating a ripple effect nationwide where other schools, institutions, and communities will follow," Soto said.