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“Smiley Garbage” for Sustainable Agriculture
There are a large number of people in the town of Surin; they have problems
in handling their own garbage. The municipality has to manage 48 tons of garbage
per day. Wet garbage like leftover from the kitchen, vegetables and fruits is mixed
with other kind of garbage, resulting in bad environment and more global warming
effects. Communities near the landfill like Ban Mai have been suffered, so they have
protested against the municipality.
SFS has supported organic farming for over fifteen years with more than 300
farm households. Wet garbage like leftover, vegetables, and fruits are good materials
for the production of biological fermented liquid and organic fertilizer. Thus, SFS
initiated the “Smiley Garbage” Project for Sustainable Agriculture, resulting in less
garbage and better relationship between urban consumers and rural farmers.
Objectives

To raise awareness and build up cooperation between producers and
consumers in solving environmental problems;

To provide farmers practicing sustainable agriculture with alternatives for selfreliance; and

To develop guidelines for community people to solve their environmental
problems.
Methods
Consumers:
1. Register consumers interested in joining the project.
2. The consumers are informed of the project conditions and given a 10-liter pail
and molasses.
3. They put wet garbage in the pail and cover it with molasses once a day.
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4. Every Thursday or Saturday during 8-11 a.m. the pails are left on the spots
that SFS can collect the wet garbage from the pails.
5. Customers are invited to review the project outcomes every 2-3 months.
Farmers:
1. Register farmers interested in obtaining wet garbage to produce biological
fermented liquid.
2. Farmers prepare a 50-100 liter fermented container.
3. SFS puts household wet garbage in farmers’ containers; then farmers ferment
it for at least a month.
4. Farmers use biological liquid to raise animals and apply it in the field.
5. Farmers review the project outcomes with consumers.
Implementation
January 2007
Promoted the project and registered participants.
February 2007
Held a meeting and provided participants with garbage pails.
March 2007
Started the project with 30 families.
Results
At first, there were 30 consumers participating in the project. In December
2007, the number was 45; 60 in February 2008 and about 100 in June 2008.
.......farm households obtain about 3,000 kg of wet garbage per month to make
compost.
Expansion of project outcomes
In April 2008 Surin Municipality had problems with people living near the
landfill because their health and environment became worse. SFS and participants in
the “Smiley Garbage” Project proposed the project concepts to the Municipality. In
May 2008, the Municipality started the “Smiley Garbage”, under SFS’s consultation,
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with 40 families in one community. SFS and community leaders cooperated in
devising the project plan.
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1.Consumers separated their household garbage. 2. SFS staff and project participants
helped carrying the garbage pails.
3. Garbage was transferred from the pails to farmers’ containers.
4. Wet garbage
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5. Piles of wet garbage waiting for farmers
6. Farmers set containers in the field.
7. People living near the landfill protested against the Municipality.
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8. Mixed Municipality garbage
9. Adverse impacts on environment
10. Adverse impacts on health
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11. Meeting with the Municipality to solve garbage problem through the
“Smiley
Garbage” Project.
12. American students learned about the “Smiley Garbage” Project and helped
project participants collect wet garbage.