Ashlee Polerak | PR Manager
Its that time of the year, the post-Halloween blues. Right now you might be surrounded by a mixture of empty candy wrappers and untradable candies you just don’t want to eat. You could be finding fake zombie blood caked onto your arms and neck and you’re definitely counting down the days ‘till Thanksgiving.
That scary movie you watched on the 31st is still giving you nightmares but the real horror story is closer than you think. The jackolantern you carved on the first of October that’s currently rotting away on your porch, in the California heat, is doing more than attracting flies.
According to the US Energy Department, those rotting pumpkins create more than 254 million tons of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) each year. As MSW sits in landfills and begins to decompose (or not) it creates what is called methane, a harmful greenhouse gas that is toxic to our air. Methane plays a role in the causes of climate change.
But fear not! The Energy Department’s Bioenergy Technologies office, is working to create integrated biorefineries. Or in simple terms, facilities that have the ability to turn plant and waste material into biofuels, biopower and other products.
According to the US Energy Department, three companies were chosen to receive federal investments “for commercial-scale biorefinery projects”Once in production two of the three companies will produce a combined 92 billion gallons of advanced biofuel per year for the military.
So if you’re okay with creating waste that could either be turned into methane or biofuel then keep carving those pumpkins, or if you are looking for another alternative, turn your rotting pumpkin into compost.
If you’re not eating it someone should. Bring old jack o’lanterns, free of wax and paint, to your local farmer’s market composters, find composters near you, or create your own compost and start your winter garden off right.