Large-scale composting workshops offered

URBANA - Illinois State University’s Department of Agriculture in conjunction with University of Illinois Extension is offering two composting workshops and field days this spring.

The first workshop will be held Tuesday, May 21, at the Western Illinois University School of Agriculture Livestock Center and Compost Facility. The second workshop will take place Tuesday, May 28, in Lake County in northern Illinois at Tempel Farms Organics Compost Facility located at 17970 Milburn Road, Old Mill Creek near Gurnee, Illinois.

“Livestock producers and horse stable operators looking for alternative manure management ideas should attend,” said U of I Extension educator Ellen Phillips. “Organic and local food growers will be able to increase their composting knowledge as well.”

The workshops and field days are also geared toward municipal administrators and news media, Phillips added.

The workshops will provide information on:

-       The benefits of composting

-       The basics of making compost

-       Illinois EPA regulations related to composting

-       Permitting and local siting requirements

-       Compost facility site development

-       Uses for compost and quality control

-       Marketing of compost

Field day participants will tour an actual composting operation and will hear practical information from experienced compost operators. Workshop participants will also receive information and materials on composting techniques.

Advance registration is $15 per person by May 20. The cost to register in person at each workshop is $20 and walk-ins are welcome, but lunch cannot be guaranteed. The brochure and registration form is available at http://agriculture.illinoisstate.edu/downloads/WIU-TempelBrochure_May2013.pdf.

The workshops and field days are funded through a Conservation Innovation Grant from the Illinois Natural Resources Conservation Service.

Source: ACES