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In response to national Cooperative. Extension Service initiative and Georgia's Solid Waste Management Acts, eight state agencies and University of Georgia personnel joined forces to demonstrate simple and effective home composting concepts in a workshop format. Attended by over 550 participants, a series of ten workshops were held in selected locations throughout the state. These workshops were designed to instruct local volunteers to teach appropriate waste management practices concerning home composting and how home composting can help meet the state mandated 25% landfill reduction goal, what costs are involved, how to establish a community education program, and where to obtain technical assistance.
During the daylong workshop, participants heard presentations on five important aspects of the role of composting in community waste management--the legislative/environmental mandate., the composting process, equipment/site requirements, curbside waste reduction, and start-up for local programs in home composting.
As the first state-wide home composting educational project, it serves as a model for other state-wide initiatives targeting waste management concerns, and creates appropriate impetus for community waste management action throughout the state.
Sites in 12 locations throughout the state of Georgia were selected by the Department of Community Affairs. Each site contained up to eight types of composting bins and offered a self-guided tour with the appropriate signage at each of twelve stops.
The authors conducted meetings at 10 of the 12 sites. Using handouts, slide sets, videos, posters, hands-on demonstrations, and lectures, the demonstration team gave presentations designed to inform selected participants concerning the amount of home-generated compostable waste that currently goes into the landfills and the simple, “fail-safe”procedures they could use at home to turn this waste into an effective mulch/soil amendment for their yards and gardens.
Each participant received an information packet and a copy of The Home Composting Handbook, edited by the authors. During the meeting the demonstration team discussed composting structures, ways to build a backyard compost pile, and methods of maintaining the pile. Participants watched the actual building of a compost pile on site with materials typically found in local yards and gardens. Also, the demonstration team offered participants information on ways to involve the community and individuals within the community in implementation of home composting.
Abstract
A browning disorder of the fleshy mesocarp of sweet cherries (Prunus avium L., cv. Schmidt) was related to damage caused by bruising, particularly of turgid fruit. Browning was reduced by immediate and continuous submergence of the bruised fruit in water at ambient temperatures (23–30°C). Vacuum treatment or the addition of ascorbic acid or calcium chloride did not improve the effectiveness of water in the retardation of browning. Cracking of fruit held in water for as long as 24 hours was minimized by adding sucrose or corn syrup at concentrations equivalent to the soluble solids content of the fruit. Canning of bruised cherries masked the browning discoloration and off-flavor present in fresh fruit.