Donegal County Council has become the first local authority in Europe to team up with an earthworm-breeder as part of its plans to encourage composting and reduce the amount of waste going to landfill.
Householders in the county are being given two options, to go for traditional compost bins or to try out a wormery. Both choices are being heavily subsidised by the council.
Mr Michael Lynch of the Bandon-based Irish Earthworm Company, who will be in Donegal next weekend giving composting demonstrations, said the main advantage of the wormery over the composting bin was that it required less work. "You just put the waste in and you don't have to worry about it," he said.
The earthworm can eat its own weight in waste a day, and the compost produced is very rich in nutrients.
Mr Lynch said he had supplied about 15,000 domestic users around Ireland with a wormery, and had sold 20,000 of the traditional composting bins. He stressed he would also give people advice on making their own wormery.
Because interest in the earthworm for composting had only started in the past 30 years, there were just a few places in the world where local authorities had used the system, including New Zealand and Australia.
He said an advantage of the wormery was that it could take a greater range of waste than ordinary compost bins. In an experiment in his home, he even fed disposable nappies to the earthworms, although it must be stressed that it only works for "eco-nappies," which are fully biodegradable.
People with young children should be mindful that disposable nappies now make up 7 per cent of total domestic waste, and switching to biodegradable brands would be an important first stop in minimising this waste.
The traditional compost bin can take organic waste which makes up 30 per cent of what goes into the bin of an average household, although this does not include cooked food.
The council is committed to providing 5,000 composting bins this year, with the ultimate goal of supplying all 35,000 households in the county. The bins are being sold at £10 while they normally retail at £50 to £60.
A wormery, which normally costs £139, will be available to Donegal householders at £45. Mr Lynch said he already had more than 300 prepaid orders. Donegal County Council has already distributed about 850 bins.
Demonstrations and sales of the composters will take place in Stranorlar/Ballybofey on Thursday, July 26th, in Letterkenny on Friday, 27th, in Carndonagh on Saturday, 28th July, and at the end of August in Milford, Dunglow and Donegal town.
Information from Donegal County Council or www.irishearthworm.com Information on eco-nappies at www.ecobabies.com