Considering curbside composting
Port Hawkesbury currently encourages residents to use backyard composters
A Nova Scotia Community College student is hoping his course-based research on curbside composting may have real-world applications for the Town of Port Hawkesbury.
Chad Kelly, a 38-year-old second-year student in the Natural Resources and Environmental Technologies program at the Strait Area
Campus of the Nova Scotia Community College, decided to look at the move to curbside collection of compostables for the applied research project component of his program.
Twenty years ago, when compostables were banned from disposal in Nova Scotia landfills, Port Hawkesbury determined that encouraging backyard composting was a better, more cost-effective option for a town of its size.
Kelly noted they have had curbside pickup of the material in his hometown of Truro for two decades.
“I thought that there was a need to have curbside composting here,” Kelly said. “All residents in Port Hawkesbury have to throw their compostable material into either the trash bags or in their backyard compost if they use it. A little bit of my research showed that backyard composting is just not as effective as curbside composting … You can’t put
your proteins, your fish bones, dairy products, recyclable papers … you can’t throw those into your backyard compost but with the curbside you can.”
Kelly’s project required a lot of leg work, surveying residents and meeting those involved in waste reduction both in the town and beyond. The results will be presented to Port Hawkesbury town council at its meeting Tuesday evening in an effort to convince them to pursue curbside collection of compostables.
“Whether we’re looking to fix our cars or it is curbside composting, it’s always the up-front cost the scares everybody,” he said.
“The problem is how much longer do we rely on the crutch of the cost; how much longer do we rely on the crutch that this is going to cost taxpayers this immense amount of money.”
There are many organizations who have shown a willingness to work with the town, Kelly added, who have years of expertise in the field under their belts.
Kelly doesn’t have any firm numbers to present to council, noting that, as a student, he’s not privy to that information.
“All I can do is I can cost compare with other municipalities — some that are bigger, some that are smaller and some that are (of a) similar size,” he said.
Kelly added that is not a perfect approach as the years of experience and funding they have received from Divert Nova Scotia has already brought those costs down. He suggested Port Hawkesbury could see those benefits within about 12-18 months.
Port Hawkesbury Mayor Brenda Chisholm-Beaton said she’s interested in hearing Kelly’s feedback and she’s also been putting out feelers on the topic online. She admitted it wasn’t an issue that had been on this council’s radar.
“It’s creating an interesting connection between NSCC and the students there and the Town of Port Hawkesbury, I kind of see it as a positive that we have students who are taking an interest in the town and they are looking at projects that could help improve the town as well,” Chisholm-Beaton said.
She noted it’s coming at a good time, as the town begins budget discussions.
The council presentation will be a dry run for Kelly, who will present to his instructors the following day. The project could also prove helpful to his future career path, as Kelly hopes to work in the waste reduction sector.