What change will you make to help Beat Climate Chaos?  Join the Mountain View Compost Challenge. Start small or challenge yourself, whatever works for you.  Read about the commitments other folks made.  Use or build on others’ ideas or create a new change commitment to challenge yourself.  Get a group of friends or colleagues to each sign up – you can encourage and challenge each other. Make it fun!

Click on the Submit Your Commitment button and fill in your commitment to change. Then get going to help Beat Climate Chaos!

in 2007, 165 Mountain View residents participated in a Santa Clara county composting workshop, the Mountain View Voice reported.
In 2010 let’s see how many people in and around Mountain View are composting or will commit to start composting before 10-10-10, October 10, 2010.

Why compost?

• Santa Clara County estimates its landfills will be full in 15-17 years.

• Composting reduces green house gas emissions.

Methane, which landfills produce, has 72 times the global warming potential as carbon dioxide over a 20 year period according to The Nobel Peace Prize winning United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in Working Group I’s Fourth Assessment Report.

Waste in landfills slowly decomposes anaerobically, without air, and thus produces methane.  Many locals know that landfills produce methane based on personal experience.  You may remember the methane gas from the Shoreline landfill that filtered through the grass at Shoreline Amphitheatre and that would catch fire when people lit cigarettes.

When waste is appropriately composted it decomposes aerobically, with air, and does not produce methane, though it does produce carbon dioxide.

Overall sending kitchen scraps, yard waste and other compostables, to your compost pile instead of to the landfill significantly reduces green house gas emissions.

After cars and transportation, landfills are one of our areas’ biggest contributors to climate chaos.  The more each of us reduces methane from landfills, the better off we all are.

So let’s get to it -
Tell us about your composting experience or commit to start composting.
Let’s see what a difference we can make all together.

Get inspired!

Read stories of what others have done to help beat climate chaos.

• Get ideas. Build on others’ ideas. Find ways to challenge yourself.
• What sounds fun to you?
• What sounds easy?
• Do you want to challenge yourself or choose something you’re confident you can stick with and accomplish?
• How are you going to measure your accomplishment?
• What can you pick that you know you can stick with as your routine?
• What change can you turn into a habit?

After you figure out what change you want to commit to, go to the commit-to-change page, get more ideas from what others are committing to, then submit your commitment. After you’ve had time to work on your commitment, come back here and submit your story.

When you commit to a change to help beat climate chaos and also when you tell your story about how you’re helping to beat climate chaos, you receive discounts, deals and offers from local green organizations.  These are intended as an immediate reward.  Your larger reward is intrinsic – knowing that you are working together with your community and making a difference to help beat climate chaos.

Once we receive your commitment or story form, review it and perhaps ask you clarifying questions, then we will send you instructions for receiving your discounts, deals and offers from local green organizations.

Read below for examples of some of the discounts, deals and offers from local green organizations

Note – We’re always looking for local green organizations to offer deals and encourage community members to help beat climate chaos.  If you or an organization you know can offer a deal, please contact us.

How do you fit composting into your busy day?: I keep a kitchen compost collector by the sink; when it’s nearly full I take it out to the composter just outside the patio doors.
What did you have to overcome to start composting, what kept you from starting sooner?: I need an attractive composting unit; the big black ball from CostCo fit the bill perfectly.
What problems have you had to overcome to maintain your compost?: Every now and then I pick up some cut grass from the gardener when I need to heat it up a bit.
Do different people in your household view the compost differently? If so, how?: I’m a single guy living alone.
What unexpected things or events occurred because of your compost?: Apparently it’s sexy to some women; I get lots of appreciations.
What’s a funny story about your compost?: Hardly a knee slapper, but I’m always tickled that the composting ball never seems to fill up. Everytime I go out, the pile seems less than last time.
What do you like best about composting?: Just knowing that I’m not contributing to the growing pile of stink in the Bay area.
What words of advice do you have for new composters?: Once you start, you’ll be surprised at the extra things you can accommodate. I have an office shredder; a good complement to kitchen waste.
Would you recommend composting to your friends and family? Why or why not?: Absolutely. The big black ball makes it easy to do without messy piles. I have a small backyard in my townhouse, but it fits in nicely.
For how long have you been composting?: Did it a lot back in 1970-1980, but not since then.
Do you have a compost bin or a worm bin or both?: Just a compost bin.
Please describe your compost and your experience composting.: Mostly kitchen waste and waste paper.
How does composting feel, sound, smell, look to you, your friends, your family?: There’s no smell unless you get really close; and then it just smells sweet.
How often to do you add kitchen scraps and other material to your compost bin/pile?: 2 or 3 times a week.
What do you put in your compost?: Kitchen waste, tea grounds, shredded paper.
What do you do with the product of your compost?: Just spread it on the ground and turn it in.
How much time per week to you spend maintaining your compost?: Maybe 10 minutes

Jeevika B of Cupertino pictures closing the recycling loop by using products made from the material you recycle.

“Mom!  The recycle bin is made out of recycled material!”

• Bringing reusable grocery bags when they go shopping
• Packing waste free lunches.  To make it easier, they took advantage of our 50% off deal on compartmentalized lunch holders
• Changing light bulbs in their house to compact fluorescent bulbs
• Recycling batteries appropriately, not throwing them in the landfill