Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Abbie and Katie go Trick or Treating -- Kinda

Saturday, October 26, we participated in the Dunellen Halloween Parade.

We invited our food waste recycling pilot participants' children to come to the plant, help "gore up" Abbie and Katie, and come on the wagon in the Halloween Parade.  Some children came to the plant, others met us at the parade start up location.

The kids were given fake "vampire blood" and painted the girls to make them look bloody.


Christopher Mata got "hands on"



Katie checking Christopher out
After the girls were decorated, they met outside and loaded up in the wagon and headed to Dunellen for the parade.



At the parade start area, we met the rest of the children and the Parade Grand Marshall joined in on the wagon.  We put hay bales for the kids to sit on. 

Everyone in place for the parade start


 
Marc chatting with the Grand Marshall
It was a gorgeous fall day, and a lot of people were at the event.




Parents walked along side during the wagon


Walking down Front Street

It was a lot of fun for us and the kids had a blast.

Thursday, October 17, 2013

A Typical Horsepowered Food Waste Pickup Day

Monday I followed the crew as they did their route.  I took pictures and some videos.

The girls get harnessed inside the plant.  Marc or Carley drive them via a ramp to an area behind the plant where our wagon is.  Below you can see the clean, green buckets loaded on the wagon.  Carley here is attaching the "horse diaper" that catches the manure.

Getting the girls read to go


Marc drives the girls through the tunnel out to Rt 28 or West Front Street.  Carley or Sean close the gate, and then they head to Dunellen.  In the video, the crew is waiting for Carley.  Starting the Route

Waiting to start the route
In this video I'm following them up Rt 28.  Heading towards Dunellen

Here the crew has passed Rock Avenue and is heading to Washington Avenue in Dunellen.  This is near the ice rink.  Girls trotting up West Front Street



The crew goes to the houses first south of West Front Street.  They head down South Washington Avenue towards those neighborhoods.  In the picture below the World Gym is to the right, the railroad tracks are in the back.


After they cover the homes on our route south of Rt 28, the crew heads back to the homes North of West Front Street.  Right now most of the people signed up for the pilot are on First Avenue through Fourth Avenue in Dunellen.


A number of the streets the horses have to turn around.  Marc does this by driving the team into a driveway, then asking the girls to back, then turn.

Video One - turning.  Backing out a driveway - 1
Video Two - another turn.  This has glare from my car windshield, but good shot of the girls sidestepping.  Backing and Sidestepping
Video Three - on a dead-end street, backing and turning around.  Backing and turning

People often stop in their cars, asking about the horses.  We often sign people up on the spot and give them a bucket!  We've been averaging 4-6 new people on the route a week.
 


This video, the crew is stopping at several homes where people have buckets out.  Towards the end of the video, you'll see a young resident holding her family's bucket.  Neighborhood pickup

Here I'm following the crew down a residential street.  Local children (on the left) watch and comment on the horses going by.  Going down a residential Dunellen street

Along the route, our pilot participants and neighbors come out to give us their bucket and chat.

Monday, October 14, 2013

Dunellen Harvest Festival

Sunday, October 13, was the first Dunellen Harvest Festival.  It was held on the Dunellen Library Grounds and had 100 vendors. 

We were there giving carrage rides and we had Ben and Jerry set up so people could pet and brush them.

We brought Ben and Jerry to the location by "ponying" them along side the wagon.  Ponying the Boys to the Festival


 
At the Festival we gave carriage rides.  The boys were petted and brushed.  It was a beautiful day.
 
Posing with the Girls
 
First Horse Encounter -- a Future Horseman?



Jerry getting brushed

Saying hi to the girls
 
Ben and Jerry were popular
 
 
 




Monday, October 7, 2013

Monday October 7 Pickup

Today because of the threat of bad weather later in the day, the crew did pickups with the horses in Dunellen only this morning.

Greenbrook, North Plainfield and Plainfield will be picked up by truck this afternoon.

Everyone stay safe and dry!

Thursday, October 3, 2013

Abbie and Katie Go to Woodbridge

Wednesday, October 2, was the start of our Woodbridge residential food waste recycling pilot. 

GWT's involvement with Woodbridge came about in 2012, when Woodbridge Township and the Green Technology Center ran a business green plan competition.  The prize was $7500 and consulting to the winner.  Woodbridge Business Plan Competition Link

The competition involved presenting a powerpoint slide show and 10-minute presentation to a panel of sustainable expert judges. 

Out of a field of seven presenters, GWT was honored and excited to be named the winner of the competition.  Business Plan Winner Link

Part of the condition of accepting the competition prize, was to do business in the town of Woodbridge.

We proposed a residential food waste recycling pilot in the town, using horses as the method of pickup.  After the Mayor John McCorman appoved the project, I met with Caroline Ehrlich, Woodbridge Chief of Staff, Deputy Police Director Joseph Nisky, and Dennis Henry of Public Works to discuss the details.  The neighborhood picked for the pilot is in the Iselin area around the Iselin Middle School and JFK High School.  We would store the wagon and bring the horses to the Indiana Elentary School #18 parking lot. 


The target neighborhood for the Woodbridge Residential Food Waste Recycling Pilot

Since yesterday was our first trip with the horses and the neighborhood, the township assigned Detective Joelle Slossberg, from the Community Affairs Division, to go out with us.

Officer Slossberg met us at the school parking lot.  We unloaded the girls, got them harnessed.


Abbie and Katie gettng ready with Officer Slossberg looking on

Next the girls get hitched to the wagon.


Marc hitching the girls
We gave out 100+ postcards to residents, talked to a lot of people.


Working the Streets of Woodbridge
Meeting new people
 
Saying hello to Woodbridge residents

We'll be doing food waste pickups on Wednesdays and Sundays in Woodbridge.  Our first official pickup will be next Wednesday, October 9.  We already have signups, and will deliver buckets over the weekend.

We also are discussing doing a Food Recycle Day at the Indiana Elementary School #18, as well as a presentation to the elementary school students on horses and our project, with the School Principal Sharon McGreevey. 

Thursday, September 26, 2013

Food Waste Pickup - Thursday

Today we started our pickup route at 8:00am.  The crew was back at the plant at 11.45am.

Here is a table of the bucket size and weight of the food waste, for your analyticial enjoyment and pleasure.  The buckets can hold quite a bit of weight.  A gallon of water weighs about 8.33 lbs. 

We give sealable buckets and no liners is so people can throw out bad liquidy things like milk, orange juice, and grease.  We also don't give liners because even though there are compostable liners available, that becomes another cost.  It's easier and quicker for us when we empty the bucket to clean it, rather than deal with throwing away liners (that could leak anyhow).

Date 9/26/2013
Bucket Size Weight
1 1 1.02
2 1 2.12
3 1 3.07
4 1 5.00
5 1 1.09
6 1 1.10
7 1 1.03
8 1 6.06
9 1 1.11
10 2 6.03
11 2 5.05
12 2 6.04
13 2 4.11
14 2 2.07
15 2 4.14
16 2 2.06
17 3.5 3.15
18 3.5 5.12
19 3.5 5.07
20 3.5 10.15
21 3.5 3.13
22 3.5 4.04
23 3.5 3.15
24 3.5 4.11
25 3.5 7.10
26 3.5 8.12
27 3.5 5.15
28 3.5 7.05
29 3.5 4.06
30 3.5 4.13
31 3.5 19.07
32 3.5 19.13
33 3.5 6.14
34 3.5 9.13
178.10

Tuesday, September 24, 2013

Goof Up!

Yesterday we goofed up and didn't pick up the folks in Plainfield over near Park Avenue.

Our apologies to all of you!  I'll be sending an email and make arrangements with you.  Argggh!!!

Monday, September 23, 2013

Residential Food Waste Pickup - Monday

The crew started pickup around 1:15pm today.

Picking up a bucket

They got 39 buckets today and the total food waste weight was 266 lbs.


Sean changing out a clean bucket
After Marc and Sean finish pickups in Dunellen, they head to a few houses in Green Brook, then North Plainfield.  Marc trots the girls back to the plant, going through Greenbrook Park.

Heading into Green Brook Park
It was a gorgeous day to be outside!
 
A beautiful day in New Jersey

Friday, September 20, 2013

Residential Pickup Thursday

Thursday afternoon the crew did our first full-fledged food waste pickup with the horses.

The route spans South and North of Route 28 in Dunellen, several homes in Green Brook, a few in North Plainfield, and several in Plainfield near us.  This area is close to a lot of towns.  One of our homes is in Piscataway, another in Middlesex -- all just over the town line. 

We have seven homes east of Park Avenue as well.  Right now we're picking those up by car.  Katie and Abbie aren't ready to do two routes in a day.  For those seven homes, we may move their Monday pickup to Sunday, so we can bring the horses.  Hopefully we can get some more people in that area signed up. 

It took 4 hours to do the route.  Marc thinks with practice, the time will be reduced.

We picked up food waste from 42 homes and collected 266 lbs of food waste .. and some dog, rabbit and deer poo!

More people are signing up for the pilot, which is great.  I have to order more buckets!!

Tuesday, September 17, 2013

First Pickup Under our Belts

The crew spent 3-1/2 hours yesterday doing our Dunellen - Green Brook - North Plainfield route.  The route goes through Dunellen neighborhoods north and south of West Front Street, then through Green Brook and then North Plainfield.

I figured our first time would take longer.  Marc was driving, Carley was navigating and Sean was picking up and dropping buckets. 

We picked up 12 buckets yesterday from people who came to the open house on Saturday.  We haven't weighed it yet, I'll post that later.  It will be interesting to see how many buckets we get on Thursday.

Later today I'll be dropping off buckets to new people who have signed up.

The Courier News came to our open house and did a nice story with good video of the larvae.  Check it out:  Courier News Story

Monday, September 16, 2013

First Horse-Powered Food Pickup Today

Our Saturday open house was well attended.  We were busy!  About 75 people came and we gave out 20 buckets.  Several were new households. 

Today we're doing our dry run of our route and dropping off buckets to people who couldn't come to the open house.

Right now we have 42 households in Dunellen signed up and 5 in Plainfield.  I hope to get more signed up in the Plainfield neighborhoods.

One of the most welcome visitors to our open house were seven of Plainfield's firemen.  They came early in the day when we were giving Abbie and Katie their baths.  The word got out to the local firefighter community that horses were in the old Mack truck building, so we've been getting visitors.  It's been great meeting and talking with them.

Our facility is safe with sprinklers and fire extinguishers, as well as being made of concrete and brick.  Abbie and Katie are safer here than most horses in regular wood barns -- most don't have sprinklers.  If there were a fire in the complex, smoke would be the greatest danger.  In case there is an emergency, they are concerned about the horses, to know what to do.  Just as they'd be concerned with rescuing dogs and cats in house fires. 

I'm very grateful for their concern.  We're discussing doing an "intro to horses" session with the firefighters, so they will know how to handle and lead the girls in case of a fire emergency. 

Update at 5:03pm on 9/16/13. Our crew got a late start today. The horses started the route at 4:30pm. I'll be picking up later this evening in the Plainfield neighborhoods near Park Avenue.


Firefighter Hughes and Company



Thursday, September 12, 2013

Open House!


Our sign is up! 

This Saturday, September 14, from 2 to 4 pm, we're going to have an open house.

For the individuals signed up for our residential food waste pilot, we will be providing them with their buckets.

We'll be showing people our start-up facility, the BSF larvae population, the horses, our wagons and  discussing our long-range plans.

Children will be able to have hands-on time with our miniature horses, Ben and Jerry.

We hope to see you there!

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

Morristown 2013 Gran Fondo

On Sunday, September 8, we were contracted by the non-profit Sustainable Morristown to provide the food waste recycling and assist with recycling overall for the 2013 Gran Fondo event.  Story on Gran Fondo

The Gran Fondo is a cycling event featuring four bike routes going from 18 miles to 107 miles in distance.  This year there were 2000 cyclists signed up and approximately 3000 people attended.  Gran Fondo website

We provided 52 food waste recycling containers and during the event policed all the recycling containers, replacing filled bins with new, clean bins.  At the end of the event we weighed everything and took the paper, plastic and can recycling to Morristown's recycling facility.  The event organizers used compostable plates and table ware.

The recycling rate was approximately 84%.  The numbers from the Morristown location:

Total Weight Collected:            1,648 lbs
Total Food Waste:                        855 lbs    52%
Total Paper/Cardboard:                216 lbs    13%
Total Plastic/Cans                         312 lbs    19%
Total Solid Waste                         265 lbs    16%

These numbers support the cost-savings of segregating and recycling food waste.  In most commercial food-related businesses, food waste can make up 50-85% of the total waste stream.

We were excited to be part of this well-run and fun event and to be associated with such a top-notch group of people, who are passionate about sustainability and recycling.  I love their byline:  People - Planet - Prosperity.  That says it all!   Link to Recap Story

Monday, September 9, 2013

Dunellen 2013 Street Fair

On Sunday,September 8, we were a vendor at the Dunellen 2013 Street Fair.  The fair is sponsored by the Dunellen Defender Fire Company #1 and is a fund raiser.  They are working on purchasing a new fire truck. 

The annual fair runs from 10am to 5pm and attracts thousands of attendees from the area.

We brought Abbie and Katie to do wagon rides, as well as our minature horses, Ben and Jerry for miniature wagon rides.

We were set up at the corner of West Front Street and Lincoln.  The wagon rides went down Lincoln, left on Front Street, right on Madison Avenue, right on Dunellen Avenue, the right on Lincoln.  When the girls got to our corner, they did a tight turn, displaying their "side step" talents.  You can see in the picture below, they cross one leg in front of the other to walk sideways, to make a tight turn.  The wagon has a "fifth wheel" which can turn on a sharp radius. Video - Abbie and Katie turning


Street fair-goers had their choice to take a big carriage ride or a little carriage ride.   Ben and Jerry are minature horses.  They are full brothers and are Amish trained.  They know how to back and sidestep as well.  Video - Ben and Jerry



Ben and Jerry's wagon loaded with grandfather and grandkids
Besides the wagon rides, horse petting was one of the crowd's favorites.  Video - Loading the wagon and heading out


Saying Hi to Abbie


Everyone loves the girls



Ben and Jerry have their fans
 
The Star Ledger on-line featured Ben and Jerry in photos of the Street Fair.  Star Ledger story 

PMUA Environmental Fair

On Saturday, September 7, we particpated in the 14th Annual PMUA Environmental Fair, which is held in the Library Park in Plainfield.  The fair runs from 11am to 3pm, and is popular and well attended.

We chatted with a lot of folks about food waste recycling and the pilots we are running.

The weather was beautiful.  We brought Abbie and Katie and our wagon to give rides.  People waited patiently in long lines for their turn.  We took everyone around the park and through part of the Van Wyck Brooks Historic District.  Video - PMUA Wagon Ride

In this video, the horses were coming up the road with passengers to the drop off/pick up point. Everyone had a great time - there was good food, dancing, and wagon rides! 
Video - Coming up the road

Some pictures:


Waiting for the next ride




Abbie and Katie with some first passengers
Marc Wirasnik and Carley Reuter work for Green Waste Technologies, specifically with the horses.

Marc has a Bachelor's degree in Equine Science from Morristown University in New York, with a specialization in draft horses and driving.  Marc has shown 6 horses in hand -- which means you are driving 6 horses!  He has shown draft horses, trained young animals and farms.  He grows hay and straw.  Marc is our Manager of Equine Transportation, and as we grow will manage and be responsible for our horse operations.

Carley has worked with horses all her life, mostly with jumping and eventing.  She is apprenticing with us, learning to handle the big horses.  Carley takes care of the horses day to day.



Marc and Carley

Saturday, August 31, 2013

All About Abbie and Katie

Abbie and Katie are full sisters.  They are registered Percherons.  Katie was foaled April 6, 2002 and Abbie was born April 6, 2000.  They both have the same birthday!

They were born in West Liberty, Ohio where breeders Roy and Patsy Bragg had a 10-mare breeding operation.  I was able to track them down, and they were delighted to find out where their "girls" were and what they were doing.

The Braggs ended their breeding operation and in 2006 the girls were sold at auction.  Since that time, the girls have lived and worked in Michigan, Florida, North Carolina and New York.  When I started looking for a team, I saw dealer Erin Lundy's advertisement, went up to see the girls, and knew they were a perfect match for our operation.

They are now Jersey Girls!

Draft Horses

Draft horses are the gentle giants of the horse world.  Most riding horses range from 14.3 hands at the shoulder to 16.2 hands.  A hand = 4 inches.  So that translates to 5 feet to 5 1/2 feet at the shoulder.  A racehorse, bred for speed can gallop at 25 m.p.h.  Most weight 1200 lbs.  A draft horse -- most are 6 feet at the shoulder, have massive feet, typically weight 1700-200 lbs, and top speed?  12 m.p.h.  Draft horses are made to carry and pull heavy loads.

There are many draft breeds, but the most prevalant are the Clydesdale (the Budweiser horses), Belgians, and Percherons.


Belgian


Percheron
Clydesdale



Percherons

In the early part of the 1900s, when people spoke about draft horses -- they usually meant Percherons.  Percherons were the most numerous draft horses in the US at that time -- they outnumbered other breeds 3 to 1. 

Percherons were originally imported into the U.S. from Perche region in France, starting in the late 1800s.  The breed evolved from the breeding of captured Arabian horses to native French draft horses.

From late 1800-early 1900, the U.S. was dependant on imported horses.  Early in World War I, the U.S. breeding started in earnest.  The war demanded agricultural products, so Percherons were vital in the war effort, since at that time only horses were used in farming. 

Percherons were also used in the war on the front lines.  While there were motorized war vehicles, horses were more reliable to pull men and artillery into fighting positions.

Now, we don't realize how dependant the American economy was on the use of horses.  Horses were used for circuses, delivery of ice, milk, coal, oil, furniture and other househood goods, as well as farming. 

But, the rise of tractors and trucks pushed out the use of horses.  By 1948 the days of horsedrawn agriculture were over.

Some interesting numbers: 
  • In Chicago, 1916, there were 49,682 licensed horse-drawn vehicles and 7,384 licensed trucks.
  • In 1930, there were 33,033 registered Percherons, 8,841 registered Belgians, 1,454 registered Clydesdales and 1,506 registered Shires. 
About the Breed

The Arabian influence gives Percheron horses an elegance not found in other draft breeds.  They are smart, hardy animals.  About 30% of Percherons will turn gray as they age, the rest are black.  Here is a picture of Abbie and Katie in 2006 when they were much darker. 



Ellis McFarland in 1937 said of Percherons:  "The Percheron has the widest appeal of any of the draft breeds as an all-around farm horse.  The expression, attitude and action of this strong and diligent draft horse suggest strength, energy, activity, robustness and endurance. ... He is naturally an up-headed horse with a great deal of sense.  His disposition has no equal.  A study of his head is enough to indicate to any horseman his unusual intelligence."

Abbie and Katie are considered to be "old style" or farm-type Percherons.  Most Percheron breeders work now towards a show horse, more of a strong, more elegant carriage type horse. 

The Urban Horse


Urban Horses - Abbie and Katie coming back to the plant
Horses can be well-kept in urban areas.  When I was in my 20s, I worked for the famed Claremont Riding Academy in New York City.  The Claremont had about 100 horses on the West Side, close to Central Park.  People could rent horses to ride in Central Park as well as take riding lessons.  I worked there as a groom (tacking and caring for the horses), and I learned to jump in their small ring.  Originally the Claremont was a hack stable -- the carriages were kept on the main level and the horses kept upstairs and downstairs. 

Many draft horse owners, such as Amish farmers, keep their horses in tie or straight stalls.  The horses are tied, can lie down.  If horses work all day, they are happy to stand and lie down in one spot.  It also is more efficient for bedding and stall cleanup. 

I like horses to be able to move around in their stalls, so Abbie and Katie have 12x16 stalls.  They can lie down to nap (haven't gotten a picture of that yet).  Their stalls connect, so they can touch and nuzzle each other.  We use pine shavings for bedding and have rubber mats on the concrete in the stalls, as well as where we harness them.  We feed them NJ timothy hay, and use a 12% protein pelleted feed.  They eat a lot!  Each eats at least a bale of hay a day.  Abbie and Katie's Home


Abbie in her Stall
 
Abbie getting harnessed
We also lease a 1/4 acre plot of land just up the street from our main plant.  The girls get turned out to do horsey stuff.  Their favorite thing to do is roll.  After about two hours, they are ready to come back to their stalls.  The neighbors I've talked to, enjoy having horses in their front yard. 


The paddock



Enjoying a good roll
Most horses in the U.S. are pets - occasionally ridden for pleasure.  Some horses have show careers, others are breeding animals.  A small number are used commercially.

My mother and I had a riding school and trail ride business in Havre de Grace, Maryland for 15 years, as well as a saddlery.  Our horses worked for a living (maybe 2 hours a day).  I learned alot during that time, from managing my own animals, taking lessons, as well as learning from others.

I believe if you own an animal, whether it is a cat, dog, snake, or horse -- a responsibile owner educates themselves about the needs of the animal, takes care of the animal, and trains the animal to do it's job (whatever that is). 

The girls wear steel shoes with borium studs, to help them grip the road.  Our farrier is Whitney Richards.  Whitney Pulling Katie's Shoe


Whitney fitting a shoe on Katie
Our vets are Town and Country Veterminary Service, who specialize in horses.  Horses need to have yearly vaccinations, get a Coggins test, as well as have their teeth cared for. 

Horses are large animals.  If not shown what they want, if not managed properly; they can hurt themselves or hurt someone.  Horses are social animals.  They like to be around others.  If you establish yourself as the herd leader, they will do your bidding, and are content knowing what is expected of them.  Routine is good.  Exercise is good.  Work is good.

Abbie and Katie have been farm horses as well as carriage horses.  They know when their harness goes on, it is work time.  They like to work.  When we take them out to the street, they are eager to get out and about.  They enjoy seeing the sights (although they don't like floating plastic bags!!) and enjoy attention from people. 

In their stalls, they love to be groomed, have their bellies and behinds scratched.  They are affectionate and kind.  They nicker to us in greeting in the morning.

The longest we let the girls work is four hours.  We've been taking them out 3-4 times a week, usually for 2-3 hours at a time.  They are very capable of working 8 hours a day as they get fitter -- just like you and I.  Right now pulling a carriage is not hard work for them.  They usually are walking, with some trotting in between to build up their wind and stamina.