LOCALadk Magazine

LOCALadk 40 what the US Department of Agriculture considers to be a sustainable rate of loss. Compost application is considered part of a suite of potential regenerative agriculture practices that have the ability to regener- ate (hence the name regenerative!) soil within the rel- atively short period of 2-5 years. It does this through improving soil tilth (structure), increasing resistance to erosion, increasing organic matter and increasing the robustness of the soil microbiome. Add to this hopeful outcome the potential for compost amended soils to increase rates of soil carbon sequestration and the story just keeps getting better and better. Community begets community So now that we have all of the science stuff out of the way, let's talk about the other robust net- work that is created and nurtured by composting: the community of community-scale composting. Composting has a way of unit- ing, inspiring and exciting people. While John has a strong affinity for microbes, it is our ever grow- ing network of municipalities, individuals, universities, neighbor- hoods, schools, and state officials that motivates us to do what we do. They inspire us every day and we work very hard to meet their needs through grant writing, project implementation, technical assistance, resource development, publicity, equipment purchas- es, manufacturing support and more. Our relationships are most concentrated in the NY North Country, but we have supported networks and projects from around the country and the world. In fact, I traveled to Newfound- land this past August to support a group of community composters who have just started a composting co-op! Perhaps our most honored relationships are in sup- port of a small but fierce group of community com- posters. Each deserves their light in the sun but they include: North Country Compost (Canton); Whitten Family Farm (Winthrop); Blue Line Compost (Blooming- dale); Placid Earth (Lake Placid); Loving Earth Compost (Saratoga Spring); River Valley Regeneratives (Platts- burgh), and the Adirondack Worm Farm (Glens Falls). The recently dubbed North Country Community Composters Coalition (N4C), has taken an informal pledge to work in collaboration, sharing resources, information, marketing, messaging, and helping each other out whenever possible. This spirit of companion- ship offers an alternative to corporate philosophies that are centered on secrecy and competition. We be- lieve this group together is much greater than the sum of our parts. More coming on this front as ANCA seeks to host a website where interested parties can go to learn more about community composting and also to learn more about each of these businesses. Our other favorite group to support are small to medium-scale farmers. Composting is a natural fit for the farming community — many of whom are sitting on gold mines of raw manure and bedding ready-made for composting. Add to this mix animal mortalities, butcher waste, and perhaps some food waste collect- ed from the customers along with a little aeration and moisture, and local farmers have a readily avail- able source of fertility capable of improving their soil health while reducing or eliminating expensive and often toxic chemical inputs. Composting: An easy win in a world of complex challenges Community-scale composting is a process that converts waste to resource. Simply stated yet infinitely complex. It is a mosaic of scientific inquiry, ecological principles, community resilience, economic impact, and straight up magic that is a missing arc in a broken circle. Circular economies. Closed loop systems. Resilient communities. Community-scale composting is at the heart of each of these bastions of hope, but it can't exist without you. If you haven't thought about composting or soil health, we hope this peels back a layer on an otherwise invisible system without which life would not exist. If you are already on board, spread the word! In a world of com- plex "solutions" to multi-layered threats, this one's an easy win. We need that. Connect with us! While farmers and the N4C network are our two pri- mary focus groups, if you are interested in community scale composting, we are interested in you. Our web- site is under development, but if you'd like to learn more about community composting or how to get a composting program established in your community, to get connected to one of the N4C businesses, please reach out to jperry@adirondack.org. We'd love to hear from you! t Jon Norman sits in front of a drum composter. All photos were provided by Jennifer Perry.

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