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At Denali National Park and Preserve in Alaska, sled dogs are more than a visitor attraction. The park’s working kennel currently includes 26 dogs and four puppies that help rangers break trails and patrol thousands of square miles of designated wilderness during the winter. And all those dogs generate a steady stream of manure.
Rather than dispose of it, Denali has been composting sled dog waste since 1980. Park Ranger Mitch Flanigan recently walked through the low-tech system during a webinar hosted by the Environmental Pet Waste Network (EPWN).
During the summer, kennel staff collect manure from the dog yard and pens and mix it with sawdust, aiming for roughly a 30:1 carbon-to-nitrogen ratio. The material moves through a series of bins as it decomposes. Staff turn the piles to introduce oxygen and monitor moisture and temperature, aiming for temperatures around 140°F.
Keeping the process aerobic is particularly important. Flanigan explained that insufficient oxygen or excess moisture can quickly create unpleasant anaerobic conditions. The covered summer system can also be opened during light rain to add moisture when piles become too dry.
Finding the right carbon source has taken some experimentation. Denali primarily uses sawdust obtained from local woodworking operations, favoring a mixture of fine and larger particles. The fines adhere well to the manure, while larger pieces help maintain air space. Staff have experimented with shredded paper, coconut husks, straw, grass clippings and larger wood pieces, but Flanigan said sawdust has consistently worked best for their system.
Winter requires an entirely different approach. With temperatures reaching minus 40°F, active composting largely stops. Staff stockpile manure and snow in larger bins constructed from pallets and begin turning the material once it thaws. Those piles can take seven or eight months to finish and are generally ready the following summer. A small Bobcat allows staff to turn the larger piles in about 30 minutes, while smaller summer bins are turned manually.
Finished compost is used primarily around the kennels and at other park buildings for flowers and ornamental plants. Some is also made available to local residents. The system’s longevity demonstrates that manure composting does not necessarily require sophisticated infrastructure. In fact, simplicity is part of its design.
“There’s a lot of low-tech things that you can do and make use of,” Flanigan explained in a recent Enviro Pet Waste Network webinar. “It doesn’t need to be anything fancy.”
