We operate small-scale community compost initiative at our primary farm on Blankenship Creek Road. The program is currently in it’s pilot stage. We collect organic material from our community and turn it into fertile compost for our garden.
Why Compost?
According to the EPA, 24% of the material sent to landfills is food. Unfortunately, food and other organic materials like yard trimmings and paper don’t break down in a landfill like they would in nature. Under anaerobic (without oxygen) conditions, organic materials produce the powerful greenhouse gas methane as they decompose. But when those materials are composted instead of thrown away, there are multiple benefits. They have potential to both pull carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. And they can help grow healthier, more nutritious food to feed our communities.
Many households in Yancey County already compost at home or feed their kitchen scraps to pets or livestock. But for those who are throwing their food waste in the garbage or down the disposal, we aim to offer an alternative through our community composting project.
How to Join Us
- Join our volunteer compost crew for hands-on experience collecting material, blending batches, turning and monitoring piles, and applying finished compost to garden beds
- Donate household compostables at our weekly Harvest Share events. See the list below for guidance on which materials we can accept. Frozen or fresh kitchen scraps are welcome.
- Connect us with individuals and businesses seeking to contribute large amounts of pre-consumer food scraps, wood chips, shredded paper, or other organic materials to our compost program
Because of our size and scale, we can only accept the following donations at this time. However, if there are things that you want to compost that aren’t on this list, feel free to reach out. As we fine-tune our process, we may be able to accept more materials in the future – so stay tuned!
To volunteer or donate material, please reach out to Katie Anne at towner@diginyancey.org or 828-536-0414. Folks can follow us on Facebook and Instagram for announcements throughout the season about our compost journey and community food waste collection events.
Let’s practice and learn together! With enough community participation and interest, we hope to expand to permanent waste drop-off sites next year. Or even generate enough surplus compost to share. Together, we can reclaim this valuable community asset that builds healthy soils, climate resiliency, community connection, and empowerment!