Composting at Rice

By and large, most of the campus yard/landscaping waste is composted on campus.  The Grounds crew uses mulching lawn mowers, which mulches grass as it's cut and returns it to the lawns.  Leaf and wood waste is also re-used on campus, with branches and limbs of smaller sizes fed into a wood chipper. 

The Earth Tub

In January 1999, Rice launched a Composting Pilot Project and purchased an on-site composting device known as an “Earth Tub,” which was installed at Jones College (see Rice News article).  During the spring semester of 1999, about 150 pounds of waste was added to the Earth Tub each day, reducing overall kitchen waste at Jones College by 75%. 

The Earth Tub was later moved to Sid Richardson College in 2003.  Food waste generated in the Sid Rich college dining hall and kitchen is mixed with landscaping waste and sawdust in the 3-cubic yard capacity Earth Tub to produce compost, which is then available for use in landscaping on campus. 

In the spring of 2005, two student volunteers - Laura Laustsen and Andrew Sinclair - stepped forward to assist with Earth Tub operations. 

Due to mechanical and structural failures, the Earth Tub was decommissioned in the spring of 2007.

For more information:

• Details of the Rice Composting Pilot Project
• Earth Tub FAQ
• General Composting Resources

Last updated: November 21, 2007