Canada: Nelson will use unique technology to reduce composting costs
The start-up cost including purchase of 4,000 FoodCyclers and bins is expected to be about $1.1 million, with two-thirds to be paid for by a grant from CleanBC
By Bill Metcalfe
Nelson Star
Dec 9, 2020
Excerpt:
Households in Nelson will first treat their organic material with a FoodCycler, a kitchen counter-top unit that dehydrates food material.
Organic material from around the RDCK will be trucked to a new facility being constructed on an old landfill site near Salmo.
According to the city, taking the water out of the organic material before it is picked up at curbside will mean “not trucking water around,” because the volume and weight of the waste will be significantly reduced. This will result in fewer curbside collections per year, lower transportation costs, and fewer greenhouse gases.
“The ideal situation in any kind of waste program is reduction, and if we can have less organic waste, we are doing the right thing,” Mayor John Dooley said at the Dec. 7 meeting at which council voted to go the FoodCycler route.
The city piloted the FoodCycler with 151 households last year, and again with another 31 this year. The results were so positive that the city is basing this new composting strategy on it.
