Contamination is a major challenge for composting at all scales, often requiring significant investments of labor, time, and money to manage. This free course introduces best practices for reducing contamination at community-based sites processing food scraps to create high-quality compost, including for food production.
The Reducing Contamination at Community Composting Sites course and associated materials cover:
The course consists of two 30-minute video modules that introduce key concepts and share models from composting sites and programs around the U.S. Each module is followed by a knowledge check and a certificate of completion is provided upon passing a final exam. The course is accompanied by two Composting Site Operator Learning Activities to deepen understanding and guide hands-on application.
The course is intended for community composters turning food scraps into high-quality compost, including for food production. It will also be relevant to anyone producing compost above the backyard scale and for programs that involve or support community composting. The Composting Site Operator Learning Activities are intended for composting site operators or for those managing composting programs.
This free course is hosted on Circle.so. Once you have completed the course intake form, you will receive an automatic email with an invitation link. Use this link to create a free Circle profile or login to an existing profile, you will then be redirected to the course. Keep track of your password, as you will need it to return to the course.
The course is accompanied by two Composting Site Operator Learning Activities:
Developing a Contamination Management Plan
Guides users in thinking through the many ways that contamination can be reduced or managed throughout the flow of composting materials, from the collection of feedstocks to the testing of finished compost.
Conducting a Contamination Audit Activity
Guides users in performing an audit and calculating contamination levels for feedstocks or overs. This learning activity provides a method for estimating the physical contamination requirements of Title 14 California Code of Regulations (CCR) sections 17862.1, 17868.3.1, and 17896.61.
These activities are intended to support users in designing or refining the design of their composting initiatives and are designed to be printer-friendly, to facilitate use in the field.
Find our full collection of composting learning activities here.
Learn more about Community Composting and our Community Composter Coalition.
Learn about the role of composting for fighting food waste, restoring soil health, and building community with ILSR’s Community Composting 101 Online Certificate Course (enrollment is open on an ongoing basis and the course can be completed at your own pace).
This project has also been funded in part by the United States Environmental Protection Agency under a Recycling, Education & Outreach (REO) assistance agreement to ILSR (EPA Cooperative Agreement 4Y-84077201). This content does not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Environmental Protection Agency, nor does the Environmental Protection Agency endorse trade names or recommend the use of commercial products mentioned.
These Composting Learning Activities are designed assist community composting sites in training their own community participants.
ILSR’s Composting 101 Training Guide covers the fundamentals of community composting, including benefits of composting, building and managing a compost pile, and troubleshooting.
A webinar introducing post-fire soil contaminants of concern, microscopy, interpreting soil test results, and the role of compost in bioremediation.
The Compost and Soil Microscopy Mini-Course introduces the microbial life that exists in healthy soil and the basics of using a microscope and your senses...