Environment: Sense of Humus Helps in Class

Eric Werbalowsky gets paid to teach people to prepare “chocolate cake” for the “FBI.”

Chocolate cake is what Werbalowsky calls the mixture of household and garden waste that he specializes in composting. And FBI, in this case, stands for fungus, bacteria and insects.

Faced with state mandates to reduce the amount of waste going to landfills, Torrance and other cities rely on companies like Werbalowsky’s Harmonious Technologies to teach people the fine points of creating a successful compost pile.

The city sells $50 compost bins at cost, picking up the expense of tax, shipping and seminars on how to use them. Last year the city sold more than 600, including 30 that were bought as Christmas gifts, said Arlene Barco, the city’s waste management coordinator.

The city will offer composting seminars at 10 a.m. Saturday and April 23 at Wilson Park, 2200 Crenshaw Blvd. Information: (310) 781-6900.