Using green waste to grow vegetables for those in need

The City of Greater Geelong is converting the municipality's green waste into compost, which is then used to grow produce at the botanical gardens. This produce is donated to a local social supermarket to help feed those in need. Every month, Hamdieh Mohmmadi buys food from this Geelong social supermarket by exchanging vouchers for groceries. “We save money for electricity, fuel and gas and home and kids,” explains Mohmmadi. Each year, across 57 of Victoria's 79 councils, around 750,000 tons of organic material are collected from green bins. By turning green waste into compost locally, the City of Greater Geelong is leading the way. “The waste that we're creating, rather than going into landfill, is actually creating nutrients, going into food supply, and going back to the residents that we have that are most in need in Geelong,” explains Emma Sinclair of the City of Greater Geelong. First, it's manually sorted to remove any contaminants. Next, it's ground into smaller pieces before a machine is used to mix and irrigate the material. It’s then piled up to mature, after which it's broken down further and bagged. “Landfill space is really expensive. We also don't want to send organic matter to landfill because it generates methane,” explains Andrew Lucas of the City of Greater Geelong. The Geelong Botanic Gardens is provided with about 2,000 tons of material. “Those garden beds that have it in it have performed a lot better than the ones that don't,” says horticulturist Liam Kelly. Approximately four crates of produce are donated to Geelong Foodshare every two weeks. Geelong is one of the Victorian councils that received funding from Sustainability Victoria to boost the use of compost made from green waste within the community. The goal is to expand this initiative to other local government areas to help feed those in need. “The more we can invest in turning those resources back into new products, like composts and like mulch, the better value we get out of those,” concludes Matt Genever of Sustainability Victoria. The state government's goal is to divert 80% of waste from landfills by 2030. This article was provided by The Associated Press.