Organics are one of the few materials that can be entirely managed locally. When we change how we think about these materials – from waste to resource – they become a valuable asset that can serve the community and support local food systems.

Ranging widely in size (from 10 to 20,000 square feet), community composting is often volunteer run, or managed as part of an on-farm system or by non-profits or small businesses. Focused on managing organics locally and producing compost for local use, in both urban and rural settings, the emphasis is on promoting community partnerships and connections.

Community composting provides an essential role in the evolution of food scrap diversion from the waste stream, normalizing composting at all scales – from backyard to commercial.

Benefits of Community Composting

• Increased local economic vitality

• Community engagement

• Improved soil health

• Reduced storm water runoff & pollution mitigation

• Waste reduction

• Climate protection

• Applied learning

Adapted from Community Composting Done Right, ILSR, 2019.

Building on a pilot project, Community Composting at Community Gardens led by CAV, CAV worked with a team of organics experts assembled by the Northeast Recycling Council (NERC) on a project, Implementing Rural Community Composting in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, and Vermont to develop training materials and to provide training and technical assistance to eight community composting sites.

The training materials were subsequently organized into five training modules, found below.

Experts included Libby Weiland, Statewide Network Coordinator, Vermont Community Gardens Network; Dawn Pettinelli, Assistant Extension Educator, Department of Plant Science & Landscape Architecture, University of Connecticut Soil Nutrient Analysis Lab; Jean Bonhotal, Director, Cornell Waste Management Institute (CWMI), Department of Crop and Soil Sciences; and, Beret Halverson, State Coordinator, UVM Extension Master Gardener & Master Composter Program. Key NERC staff involved in the project were Athena Lee Bradley, who initiated the project, and Cindy Sterling.

The project was funded through the US Department of Agriculture, Rural Utility Services, Solid Waste Management Grant Program. BioBags America, Inc. donated kitchen caddies and compostable food scrap collection “BioBags” to project sites.

Community Composting Training

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