Lumen Christi Catholic College students were in the thick of the action when it came to shifting 30 cubic metres of compost on Tuesday morning at Club Sapphire.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Under the guidance of Dan Bakker, sustainability educator and project manager of the conversion of number 4 green at Club Sapphire, the students were there to work on the From Little Things Parklands (FLTP) project which will see the green converted to an urban farm.
Once established the farm expects to capitalise on local organic waste to grow produce for retail in the immediate area and hopes to fund its wider project whilst also educating the community in sustainable agriculture.
The project has received significant support from Club Sapphire, Merimbula Scouts, BVSC Waste & Environment Services, Lumen Christi Catholic College and the Nethercote Market Committee and is expecting to attract broad partnership with numerous other local organisations.
On Tuesday council’s waste department supplied the students with the compost made from green bin collections in the shire.
Luke Hamilton from the waste department said that council was now using a new process for making compost after purchasing some new equipment.
“It’s called a mobile aerated floor system and pumps the hot air in from underneath,” Mr Hamilton explained.
“It allows us to have a faster turnaround and cope with larger volumes,” he said.
One of council’s biggest problems with the compost though is contamination and Mr Hamilton asked those using green bins to ensure nothing but green waste went into them.
“Otherwise we have to pick it out by hand,” he said with a grimace.
FLTP is a Merimbula based non-profit group seeking to create a social environment that works to protect and enhance local biodiversity and ecological systems.
Energetically supported by a high-profile visit from ABC Gardening Australia’s Costa Georgiadis in August, FLTP launched its Harvest Program and is looking for community support in the next phases of development of the urban farm. For more information or to get involved email info@flt.org.au or call 0435 434 147.