City Offering Composting Workshops

Nick Murray

On episode 6 of the Friendly City Podcast, City Communications Manager, Craig Hemingway spoke about composting with a local expert, Jenna Drinnan. Drinnan will be hosting a pair of composting workshops, facilitated by the City of Moose Jaw, at the Kinsmen Sportsplex on April 16th & 17th.

"It's the same course each night" Hemingway said, "so you only need to attend one."

For those out there concerned with their garbage - it's been in the news quite a bit lately, what with bi-weekly garbage collection, city-wide curbside and escalating costs at the landfill - Hemingway stated that "composting is one way to reduce the amount of waste that does end up in our landfill".

Drinnan pointed out that when homeowners start composting they see their waste go down anywhere from 30-50%, depending on the amount of produce they eat.

We can also surmise that it will reduce the amount of waste in our garbage bins as well; making them both harder to fill and easier to lug out to the curb.

"The easiest way to go about it is to have a bin," Drinnan said, "and the city provides these at a subsidized cost."

The bins cost $25. You can get them at the workshop.

The idea is to fill the bin with your kitchen scraps; fruits and vegetables, Drinnan explained. "It just turns into dirt, like magic."

Hemingway asked about something called "worm composting"

Drinnan mentioned that that was a good option for people living in apartments, but a little more difficult to set up and maintain.

She also spoke of a common misconception about composting. "You don't need to be a gardener to use your compost. You could just sprinkle it over your lawn. You could just let it sit there for a few years, it will reduce and shrink down enough that you don't even need to worry about it" she said.

At the workshops, Drinnan said, "we just talk very practically about how to compost. We go over the how tos, what do you do, how do you do it and then we go through some troubleshooting as well."

Drinnan asks that people pre-register at the Sportsplex. The workshops cost $5.

Listen to the Podcast: 

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