47. The Harvest Collective
In 2009, San Francisco enacted the first mandatory municipal composting program. Leave it to the forward-thinking techies of the Bay Area to lead the masses in yet another way. But community composting programs are not a hipster fad. These are real strategies toward the ultimate goal of eliminating the problem of solid waste. And as a vegetable grower, the end product represents the lifeblood of the salad production at the heart of my business.
Davey and adored family
There is a soil fertility visionary working in Roanoke that I want you to know about. Davey Stewards was one of the first friends I made after moving to SW Virginia, and I knew from the very beginning that we were kindred spirits. His familiarity with permaculture principles and his experience leading a nationwide litter-collection campaign have uniquely positioned him for his latest effort: a community composting program.
The Harvest Collective is an ambitious permaculture organization seeking to bring friends, neighbors, and clients into better harmony with our planet. Davey leads the Collective in compassionate earth work guided by principles such as non-violence, respect for diversity and inclusion, and a dedication to zero-waste. And zero-waste is not simply an emphasis on recycling plastics and cardboard; it calls for communities to complete the infinite loop of materials its citizens use, ultimately eliminating landfills and carbon emissions. This may seem like a lofty goal, but it starts with projects like the community composting program.
Thanks to a working relationship with the Roanoke Food Co-Op and LEAP for Local Food, Davey’s Collective has secured some space in north Roanoke to pilot this soil-building compost facility. Enrolees in the program would pay a yearly membership fee and be given a collection bucket. You (and your roomates, family, or business colleagues) will fill that bucket with food scraps, and drop the load at a nearby collection site. The Collective, with help from the compost wizards at Coker Composting, does the hard part: combining those food scraps with dry brown material, turning the pile to ensure adequate oxygen and moisture, and monitoring temperatures to ensure a fertile compost product. At years end, members are welcome to collect up to a cubic yard of compost for use on their gardens! And they’ll be amazed at how empty their trash bin is every week when they put it out for collection.
As a member of the composting program, if you do not have a use for the black gold at the end of the season, The Harvest Collective will be happy to put the soil to use in their own orchards. Outback Orchards grows a variety of tree fruits and annual vegetables just a stone’s throw from the composting site. And Outback Orchards is also a community project! If you have interest in growing your own food, but don’t have the time or space to dedicate to your own growing operation, the collective farming model could be perfect for you!
You can learn more about The Harvest Collective and all the amazing work they are doing by checking out their website: TheHarvestCollective.net. But today, they need your help to get the compost program up and running. Not financial help, but simply an expression of support. To start the pilot program, they need approval from Roanoke City for a zoning exemption to allow the facility to begin its operation. They’ve started a petition to show the city council the support the community has for their project. Please visit the petition, share it, sign it, and share it again so that Roanoke can take this step toward becoming a zero-waste community!