$170K helps grow composting program

SARANAC LAKE | Turning food waste into compost will now be easier for North Country communities thanks to expanded funding for a regional community-scale composting program, Compost for Good. The Compost for Good (CfG) initiative has been awarded $170,000 in grants that will provide technical assistance for organizations, municipalities and other institutions interested in designing and implementing composting programs in their communities. The three grant awards — $120,000 from the USDA Rural Business Development Program, $30,000 from the Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) Program and $20,000 from the New York State Pollution Prevention Institute (NYSP2I) — will help AdkAction and ANCA bring the composting initiative to more North Country communities. CfG was established by co-founders John Culpepper, Katie Culpepper and ANCA Energy Circuit Rider Jennifer Perry in 2020 when NYSP21 provided a $20,000 grant to launch the program. Regional demand for CfG's services has grown significantly since then. AdkAction and ANCA's partnership will increase CfG's capacity and support more communitywide composting efforts across the region, particularly among North Country farmers. "We've seen remarkable growth in both the work accomplished, and the need for services provided by Compost for Good since they joined AdkAction in 2020 . . . . ," said AdkAction Executive Director Sawyer Cresap. AdkAction will oversee the $120,000 USDA Rural Business Development Grant (RBDG) to support community business development for composters, haulers, manufacturers, retailers, software creators and other enterprises. The second-round grant allows CfG to build on efforts that were supported by a $93,000 RBDG in 2021 and 2022. ANCA will administer the SARE and PPI grants to provide technical assistance for farms interested in improving and expanding their composting efforts. The SARE Partnership Grant will support a research and pilot project on Whitten Family Farm in Winthrop, N.Y. It will allow farm owner Cherie Whitten to conduct research on the amount of gas, moisture and heat produced by her compost, which will be used to heat and fertilize greenhouses on her farm. ANCA will support Whitten's research with a team of scientists and provide educational materials and technical assistance for farmers interested in replicating her project.

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$170K helps grow composting program

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