{"id":18231,"date":"2014-12-04T13:24:27","date_gmt":"2014-12-04T18:24:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wordpress-367309-1145705.cloudwaysapps.com\/?p=18231"},"modified":"2014-12-20T15:32:20","modified_gmt":"2014-12-20T20:32:20","slug":"eco-safe-digester-turns-food-waste-into-gray-water","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sustainablog.org\/articles\/eco-safe-digester-turns-food-waste-into-gray-water\/","title":{"rendered":"EcoSafe Digester Turns Food Waste Into Grey Water [Video]"},"content":{"rendered":"
Editor’s update (12\/16\/2014):\u00a0<\/strong>This post, and the technology discussed, have generated some great discussion! Head to the bottom of Steve’s original post for thoughts from former EPA employee Krista Durlas, and a response from BioHiTech CEO Frank Celli.<\/p>\n —-<\/p>\n The United Nations Environment Program says about one third of the food produced in the world for human consumption is either lost or wasted<\/a>. That means millions of tons of food waste have to be disposed of each year. Tossing it into landfills creates methane<\/a>, which is 20 times more damaging to the atmosphere than carbon dioxide, according to the EPA.<\/a><\/p>\n BioHitech<\/a>, a New York-based company, has developed the EcoSafe Digester, an aerobic unit that breaks food waste down into grey water so it can be safely flushed down the drain. The company says\u00a0its digester is like a “mechanical stomach,” in which\u00a0an ideal combination of heat, moisture and oxygen enables microorganisms to thrive and break down the food scraps\u00a0it is fed.\u00a0The largest EcoSafe Digester\u00a0uses up to 300 gallons of fresh water and discharges 400 to 500 gallons of effluent\u00a0in\u00a0a 24 hour period.<\/p>\n The machine\u00a0is designed to operate\u00a0on-site, where it can help reduce the amount of\u00a0food waste that ends up in a landfill. And it is connected wirelessly to BioHiTech’s computer cloud, \u00a0providing the company’s\u00a0technicians with information about digestion rates, utility usage, hours of operation, maintenance issues and other features of the digester\u2019s work. If problems arise, such as interruption of digestion or any other anomalies, a real time notification system allows BioHitech to respond quickly.<\/p>\n The company is able to\u00a0remotely control each unit through its cloud and make performance adjustments from anywhere in the world at any time. The system can identify trends and inefficiencies that lead to waste, allowing customers to understand the historical patterns of food waste and take steps to avoid it in the first place.<\/p>\n If necessary, computerized records are available to\u00a0help customers substantiate that they are in\u00a0compliance with waste disposal regulations. And as an\u00a0extra bonus, BioHiTech will help publicize\u00a0that a customer is\u00a0using\u00a0an EcoSafe Digester to promote its green credentials\u00a0in the community.<\/p>\n All in all, the EcoSafe Digester is good for the the company, good for customers and good for the environment.<\/p>\n