General Project Description:

The City of Northfield and Dick’s Sanitation, Inc., conducted a test of food waste composting over a six month period in 2013.  DSI provided 148 households with weekly pick-up of their compost which was taken to a commercial composting site from June through November.  Data is being reviewed by the Northfield Environmental Quality Commission (EQC) and will be presented to the City Council in early 2014, for consideration of expanding citywide.  Separation of organics would help extend the life of the County landfill, reduce methane generation, produce usable compost for residents and city use, and has a possibility of reducing overall expense to Northfield of solid waste.

Additional Project Outcomes:

Data from the pilot program was analyzed by Carleton College statistics students led by professor Laura Chihara in hopes of informing City decisions based on quantitative program outcomes.  Analysis opportunities included organics weight data, percent of waste diverted, and customer survey results.

A summer 2013 internship position focused on increasing participation in the pilot program through community outreach and education. Carleton College student Caffi Meyer created educational materials, raised awareness for the program, collected data about organics bin usage, analyzed waste weight data, and projected city-wide financial cost/benefits.

Project Reports:

Cows, Colleges and Composting Poster

Organic Waste Survey Report

2013 Internship Report (Caffi Meyer)

Project Contact: George Kinney geokinney@gmail.com