The growing season is over. In the California capital, dead autumn leaves lay heavy on the damp, manicured lawns of Sacramento City College as students learn that through death, something else will eat. City Farm, Sacramento City College’s organic urban farm, concluded its first semester cultivating students into stewards of the land outside of Lillard Hall on Dec. 2 with an experiential learning experience—naturally recycling organic waste to create healthy, valuable, nutrient-rich compost for the next growing season. “It's also called ecologically intelligent design,” says Robyn Waxman, City Farm faculty coordinator and graphic communication instructor. “Instead of taking, making and

As Earth welcomed its 7 billionth child Nov. 1, international concern for diminishing world resources and mounting pollution are on the rise. This concern not only stems from the number of people on the planet, but how those people consume and dispose of their resources. However, depending upon how the international community prepares for that challenge, it could serve as an opportunity for positive change. The Sacramento City College’s Student Associated Council has recognized the international concern for its impact on the planet by creating a new position to help facilitate the campus’ desire to reduce its waste by welcoming plant biology major Michael Viscuso to the newly created posi

Restaurants accumulate anywhere between 250 and 500 pounds of organic kitchen scraps each week, according to Green Restaurant Alliance of Sacramento co-founder David S. Baker. These hundreds of pounds of scraps, instead of filling landfills, can be used for compost to fertilize the very soil that will produce the next crop of fruits and vegetables. Since March 2010, GRAS, in partnership with Atlas Disposal, has worked toward creating a more sustainable food industry in the city through the use of a “closed-loop” system. “These are valuable resources that would be just going straight to a landfill and serving no use,” Baker said. GRAS is made up of Hot Italian, Mulvaney's B&L, Selland’s

The Green Restaurant Alliance of Sacramento has a hand in 10 local restaurants and hopes to reach more with its mission of establishing a sustainable restaurant industry. GRAS is "dedicated to making Sacramento a leading sustainable food community and a leader in the green-restaurant industry," according to its website. The year-old organization helps restaurants reduce waste by composting food scraps and biodegradable material. "This is not a brilliant idea, it's being done worldwide," said GRAS co-founder David S. Baker. "Why can't it happen in our town?" The 10 members of GRAS are Hot Italian, L Wine Lounge and Urban Kitchen, Mulvaney's B & L, One Speed, Selland's, Grange, Ella, Tuli

The Problem with Food Waste       Lift the lid to your garbage can, ugh! It stinks. The scraps from Monday’s dinner are the culprit. By the end of the week, when it is time to take the can out to the curb, the stench can be difficult to bear.       Once that trash gets picked up, the smell is no longer your problem; it is gone, far, far away to stink somewhere else. That stinky food waste goes with the rest of your trash to a smelly transfer station and then a stinkier landfill. Statewide, food waste accounts for more than 15 percent of what is sent to landfill, according to the California Integrated Waste Management Board’s (CIWMB) 2008 Waste Characterization Study.       Sacramento resi

Learn how to turn yard waste into compost and improve the health of your soil! These free seminars include a how-to lesson, a special compost recipe and the ability to purchase a Biostack compost bin for $65 (retails for $129). Each seminar will feature a special lecture on various topics that will help your garden continue to flourish all year long. Composting is great for flower and vegetable gardens and can help conserve water and recycle yard waste. No reservations necessary. Come join us! March 13, 2010 8 a.m.-10 a.m. Southside Park Community Garden 5th and W Streets Lecture Topic: Adding green manure/cover crops to garden BioStack Compost Bins will be available at-cost ($65, retail