By CATHERINE SENGEL/ecoRI News contributor
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| Three elephants are responsible for up to 80 percent of the waste produced by the zoo’s 280 animals. (Roger Williams Park Zoo) |
EDITOR’S
NOTE: The Charlestown Citizens Alliance could help a local business, Earth Care
Farms, and the environment by following the example of Roger Williams Zoo and donating
their b.s. for composting. – WC
PROVIDENCE — Ron Patalano, director of operations at Roger
Williams Park Zoo, has high praise for his staff.
After all, it takes a mighty
amount of shoveling to fill the two 30-yard Dumpsters of animal excrement that
are hauled away weekly as part of the zoo’s recycling program.
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| The source of approximately 80% of Charlestown's bovine excrement |
Added to the grass clippings, vegetable scraps, animal bedding,
hay and other natural materials trucked to Earth Care Farm in Charleston for composting, are 624
tons of manure produced annually by the zoo’s 280 inhabitants.
Keeping yards and buildings waste free “is not an easy job,”
Patalano noted.
The South County operation sells about 4,000 cubic yards of
high-quality compost a year to farmers, gardeners and landscapers throughout
southern New England. Included in this nutrient-rich mix are food scrap, fish
gurry, shellfish and seaweed. The animal waste from the 100 species that
inhabit the zoo adds biodiversity and heat to the process.
“The manure is probably less than five percent of the total
finished product, but when you’re adding up 60 cubic yards a week for a year
it’s a significant amount,” Barth said.
Earth Care Farm also welcomes the wood shavings, straw bedding and
spent exhibit staging, such as bamboo stalks and carved pumpkins, that come
along with the animal waste.
Carnivores are screened for parasites and diseases, and dewormed
monthly by the zoo’s Veterinary Department, ensuring manure is free of
dangerous microorganisms and safe for composting, according to Peg Ogert, the
zoo’s buildings and grounds/horticulture manager.
Patalano estimated that the elephants generate between 70 percent
and 80 percent of the more than 3,000 cubic yards of manure composted annually.
“While I give our entire keeper staff a lot of credit, for the
elephant crew, it’s a yeoman’s job every day taking care of our three girls,”
he said.
The crew rotates with four keepers on the elephant side and two on
the giraffe side of their 7,000-square-foot shared home at any given time. In
summer when “the girls” are outdoors around the clock, there’s that acre to
clean as well.
Roger Williams
Park Zoo gets star
mention on farm tours for garden clubs, civic groups and schools, Barth said.
“People like to hear that places like the zoo are thinking ahead
and not sending their waste to the landfill,” he said. “The school children
really like the elephant manure. They get a big kick out of the pile.”