Fight identity theft with composting...

Check out this link to the BBC on line:
http://news.bbc.co.uk

Click on "Nice little wormer"

I don't see "nice little wormer" on the link.

But I think I know what the story eludes to?

I have been shredding and composting all of my mail, bills, receipts, paper trail items, etc. for about a year now. I really appreciate not only the readily available source of browns, but eliminating junk mail from the trash has significantly reduced the amount of trash we throw out. I didn't realize how the volume of junk mail was our largest component of trash.

My I ask about the inks that are on the mail you are composting?..I started to use paper that was shredded at school and started to think about what kind of paper it is and what kind of ink is on the paper...Am I being too picky about whats giong into the compost?....Judy

I was interested in this article because I have always avoided composting printed materials unless I knew for certain that the paper was not bleached with chlorine and soy-based inks had been used. That means I rarely compost printed materials. But it is said that newspaper is okay. I think it really does come down to how picky you want to be about your compost.

One year, Organic Gardening magazine awarded its Composting Contest award to a woman who made her black gold from the 2 items she started each day with: newspaper and coffee grounds. That was it!

Start composting with paper and you will have more plant than you will need next year. Really. It is good to start somewhere to learn the process.

I have read that the majority of inks used are soy based now. The price of oil has nearly eliminated the use use of petroleum products to produce ink.

Almost all white papers have been whitened in some chemical manner... even so, there is not enough chemical residual on the paper to affect the composting process.

I have noticed an increasing amount of envelopes marked "made with recycled paper...

Paper is listed under "Stubborn Materials" in Stu Campbell's "Let it Rot", published in 1975. He notes, re paper:

"It IS mostly organic matter...Most agree that paper improves the STRUCTURE of your compost, but that it should never be used in excess since it is extremely resistant to microbial attack...Regardless of how much you use, any paper headed for the compost pile should be shredded or, at the very least, scrunched up---never laid flat in sheets."

He also notes that there is disagreement about the "printer's ink" (but this was in 1975). Some say it actually contains beneficial trace elements, while others say it's toxic to plants. I know a friend with multiple chemical sensitivity who cannot be around the ink we all use in our ink-jet printers these days, so it's got to have a bunch of chemicals in it, even if it is soy-based.

For me, I think I will start using a small amount of shredded paper; I can probably limit myself to mailings from organizations who use eco-friendly stuff.

I absolutely agree that the paper should be shredded... else it matts together in icky, blechy lumps of yuck...

I also recommend that the shreddings be moistened before you add them to the compost. If dry they can blow around or they absorb moisture from the pile.. so its best to get them damp before you add them to the pile.

The shredder works wonders and shredding helps start the breakdown process.... I really like how the shredded paper wets down and mixes with the other stuff in my pile.

Actually, tearing is better than shredding because it leaves a torn edge that absorbs moisture better. Old papermaker's trick.

I have way too much junk mail and not enough time to tear every piece. The shredder works just fine for me. The shredder that we have does leave ragged edges - it kind of chews the paper more than it cuts it...

Ah Darius you are a man with time and patience. I on the other hand love the shredder.

... except I'm a woman.

Then, shouldn't it be "Daria"? (I'm so old I studied Latin in school!)

LOL! Yes, probably. However, it is a name I took legally when I became one of the first women builders in Boone. It came from a book I was reading... said to be (in some references) a Greek deriv. of an old Sanskrit word meaning "of the mountain"...

sorry Darius. I just assumed with the name. Congratulation on the courage to do that.

Hi Everybody:

Thought that I'd leave some info regarding the compostability of ink.

This is from my bro who works in the print industry. Unfortunately, he doesn't garden so take this with a grain of uncompostable salt:

Print ink (text on letters / newsprint etc) - vegetable based and can be safely composted.

Plotter ink (glossy fliers / magazines) - not good for compost.

Cheers

Steve