Tuesday September 5, 7:30 p.m., in a composting pavilion in Paris. We are invited to the launch of Gaspard Kœnig’s novel, Humus (L’Observatoire, 379 pages, 22 euros), one of the most anticipated books of the literary season. In this square of 13e borough, editors, journalists and other guests lean over a bin teeming with earthworms. Problem: in this scorching week it’s over 30°C, and earthworms don’t like the heat. The master composter of the pavilion is obliged to dig them out of the ground to show them to the neophytes, who lean cautiously over the bin, their glass in hand. “I promised champagne and earthworms, I kept my word! »laughs the novelist.
When we found him, a week later, in his office at 3e district of the capital, Gaspard Kœnig comments on his surprising coming-of-age novel. Humus follows the trajectory of two friends, Arthur and Kevin, who set out, one in the rehabilitation of his grandfather’s plot ruined by pesticides, the other in vermicomposting. “Compost opens up a major philosophical reflection, since it refers to the cycle of life and death. However, if philosophers have looked a lot at the sky and the stars, very few have looked at what is under their feet.notes the writer.
In fact, composting is entering the political, social and cultural agendas. From 1er January 2024, communities will be required to offer their residents bio-waste sorting solutions. Once the infrastructure is in place, the success of the operation will depend on the goodwill of everyone, as with sorting cardboard or glass. “Faced with compost, everyone is alone with their conscience”, Damien Houbron soberly summarizes. This master composter, creator of the DM Compost company, introduces Parisians to this practice in consultation with the City of Paris.
Some simple instructions
We find it at the Alice-Milliat shared garden, in 14e borough. Around him, a small group is gathered in front of a wooden bin. Equipped with a green vest, Damien Houbron takes a small plastic box containing compost from his backpack and passes it around. “We are looking at a 2022 vintage”, he comments. Some participants become emboldened to the point of touching. “We are dealing with a material that is neither too dry nor too humid, with a slight aroma of undergrowth”, he explains.
To obtain this optimal result, simply follow a few simple instructions: only put leftover fruit and vegetables in the bin, especially not meat or fish. The latter would risk attracting what the master composter modestly calls “somewhat problematic animals, even if they are part of biodiversity”. In other words, rats. Then, we mix the waste with crushed wood, which will absorb moisture from the plants.
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