Composting laser printed paper safe?
led_zep_rules
17 years ago
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squarefooterg
17 years agoled_zep_rules
17 years agoRelated Discussions
Is printed computer paper & grocery bags safe to compost?
Comments (6)Steve, I believe that his concern was the salts and fats that are used in cooking and the fact that his composting is done in an urban setting and the resultant problems from pests like rats, mice and other undesirable critters. I don't think that there is a real problem with the inclusion of animal parts as they decompose on the surface in nature. We used to purchase free-range chickens from a local biological farmer and he added the feathers, heads and innards to his compost pile. Malcolm Beck mentions composting animals in his book "The Secret Life of Compost"(I know this should be underlined but I don't know how to do it), and actually advocates the composting of humans following the cessation of life rather than embalming with toxic chemicals. Beck contends that everything should be recycled including sewage sludge in order for agriculture to be sustainable. I see his point but I still have questions regarding heavy metals, chemicals including petroleum based cleaning agents and even medicines that can be in the waste stream. Using sewage sludge on my property still gives me the creeps although I've heard some informed folks advocate it's use. I've also read accounts of people fouling their land with it and the results are forever....See More3 questions about composting paper
Comments (6)"1. I've read that it's OK to compost office paper, paper plates, etc. These are usually bleached and contain who knows what other chemicals. Are these really safe to compost?" That it was bleached does not mean that it still has bleach in it. The bleach was used to whiten the paper and is long gone. There may be other chemicals, but I'd be surprised if there are any that are dangerous, and if there are, I doubt if they would still be dangerous after composting. "2. Is newspaper always OK, or do I need to check that my particular newspaper is printed with soy-based ink?" I usually recycle newspaper, but I wouldn't be concerned about composting it. Soy based inks are much cheaper than alternatives and newspapers are cutting costs wherever they can, so it would be rare to find a newspaper that doesn't use soy based ink. If you're concerned, call the newspaper office. "3. I know cardboard rolls need to be shredded. How do you do this? Electric shredder somehow? Scissors? Rip apart with bare hands?" I didn't know cardboard rolls need to be shredded. They'll decompose faster if they are, but they'll still decompose if they aren't. If you shred them, I don't think it matters how you do it, but few of the low end electric shredders would work for very long if fed a steady diet of cardboard rolls....See MoreCan I compost printed boxes?
Comments (6)The corrugated packaging industry is a huge business world wide. Canada and the US produce most of the paper used in boxes...we also consume most of those boxes too. It's a very sophisticated and highly competitive business. The inks and adhesives used are well known and often produced by other large companies like 3M and WR Grace. All inks contain binders and polymers that help the ink dry and not run... but these are very, very, very small parts of the ink. Paper and paper boxes are about 40% of the stuff that goes into our landfills. Recycling and composting are great ways to use these boxes. I consider corrugated and fiberboard boxes basically inert and compost as many as I can. The rest I recycle. I know some have a phobia about any man made product as being full of bad chemicals ... and some are. But, I have no fear of cardboard made in Malaysia, China or Canada... However...if it was made in Newark, New Jersey...forgetabout it!!! :^) BTW...Malaysia is a beautiful country in the South China sea and in Kuala Lampur they have the Petronas Twin Towers the second tallest building(s) in the world....See MoreQuestion(s) about safely discarding papers
Comments (33)I am checking into this as well. It seems some UPS, some Fed Ex stores have this. You bring the stuff, it goes into a locked container which is picked up regularly and shredded offsite. In our area I think it is Iron Mountain who shreds it. The price seems to be as best I can determine, 79 cents a pound. My dh called one place that will charge $150 to shred on location. We do live in a development, but there is minimal sense of community- but we are tossing around the idea of mentioning it to neighbors and seeing if people are interested. That could really work,and would be a lot more convenient than putting 2 boxes in the car when we got around to it. Again though, we do need to go through the boxes to make sure that there is nothing we need..............See MoreNevermore44 - 6a
6 years agosusanzone5 (NY)
6 years agosusanzone5 (NY)
6 years ago
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