Canada - Agriculture Viewed as Primary Driver of Commercialization of Composting
Published:October 27, 2004
Source :Manitoba Pork Council
The Composting Council of Canada says agriculture has become one of the primary drivers of the commercialization of composting.
The non profit Composting Council of Canada is dedicated to promoting the universal use of composting. Executive Director Susan Antler says the movement was propelled in the 1980s by the desire to reduce the volumes of materials sent to municipal landfills but there's a growing role for composting in agriculture.
"Manure management has become more and more of an issue for agriculture and the opportunity is to incorporate composting into the means to manage manure.
At the same time, with the whole issue of deadstock management, there's a role for composting. Similarly where the opportunity is for the agriculture community, they know best the soil.
They know best what has to go into the soil to make it a prime target for growth. They can help us understand how to use compost better and to make sure that it's meeting its potential for their needs as well as for other market segments.
The difference in attitude is very strong between public sector composting facilities and private sector composting facilities.
Right now the municipal facilities are focused primarily only on a diversion activity, so to remove those types of materials from landfill.
The private sector folks recognize that they're not only capturing valuable resources but they're producing products.
In terms of capturing the full potential of the power of composting you have to look at it both from a product as well as a management perspective."
Antler says the challenge is to make the public aware of how they can get involved in composting, to understand the products under the compost umbrella and how to use them.
