Prairie Landing committed to compost

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This article was published 25/04/2022 (1295 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

TRANSCONA

A seniors’ apartment building in Transcona is taking steps to reduce its collective carbon footprint.

On April 19, over 20 residents of Prairie Landing 55-plus Apartments (20 Cal Gardner Dr.) attended an information session hosted by Karrie Blackburn, sales and customer service lead for Compost Winnipeg, a non-profit social enterprise administered by the Green Action Centre. Starting May 1, property manager Adam Janzen said the building will be providing composting for interested residents through Compost Winnipeg.

“We’re trying to do a few things here,” Janzen said, referring to green initiatives such as providing residents with eco-friendly laundry strips at cost. Other properties run by Burnett Management are looking into providing car-share options and charging stations for electric vehicles. “We’re trying to anticipate what’s happening. It’s interesting.”

According to Blackburn, up to 40 per cent of household waste is compostable. Currently, Compost Winnipeg provides weekly compost pickup for residential and commercial clients across Winnipeg, including the WRHA. Compostable materials are trucked to Prairie Green Landfill, where they are processed at a designated composting site. The end product is then used in the landfill, and also for residential and agricultural purposes.

The processes available at Prairie Green Landfill allows Compost Winnipeg to compost materials — such as meat, bones, and compostable packaging — that backyard composts can’t break down. That process takes about 60 to 90 days to complete, though Blackburn noted the organization is starting to work with a composter out of Morden, Man., which has developed a system to process compost within 24 hours, which could be a game-changer for the industry.

“Here in Winnipeg we’re at least a decade behind other major Canadian cities when it comes to composting,” Blackburn told the crowd. “This is a conversation that needs to be had between all Winnipeggers. Teamwork really does make the dream work.”

Compost Winnipeg will provide Prairie Landing with two 64 gallon cartable bins, which can accommodate compostable waste from up to 20 units per week. If demand increases, as Janzen hopes it will, they can add more, while reducing the amount of garbage that needs to be hauled out each week. The service will be provided to residents at Prairie Landing at no extra cost, with the hope that costs will offset themselves in time.

“So much of our time management is waste management, anyway,” Janzen said.

Currently, the City of Winnipeg is completing a residential composting pilot project. Should the project be accepted by city council, it would be up for debate as a city-wide service in 2026. Until then, Blackburn said Compost Winnipeg is hoping to bridge the gap.

“We want composting to be easy,” she said. “If it’s a hassle, people won’t want to do it. We don’t want our service to be bougie. We want it available for everyone.”