In 2007, the quantity of biodegradable municipal waste disposed of to landfill increased by 4% to 1,475,077 tonnes in Ireland. This was at variance with the 2010 target of 967,433 tonnes set by the Council Directive on the Landfill of Waste (1999/31/EC) (the Landfill Directive) (European Council, 1999) and demonstrates that despite concerted action over the last number of years, Ireland is moving further from meeting its obligations under the directive. Full implementation of the National Strategy for Biodegradable Waste is increasingly urgent, given that the first target year of 2010 requires a reduction in landfilling of biodegradable municipal waste of over 550,000 tonnes from current levels.
While the separate collection of household food and garden waste at kerbside increased by 20% to 18,705 tonnes in 2007, the reduced collection of household food and garden waste at civic amenity sites resulted in a decrease in the overall collection rates of 1,000 tonnes (Le Bolloch et al., 2009). This is despite the recognition in the 2006 National Waste Report (Le Bolloch et al., 2007) that the separate collection and diversion from landfill of organic waste must be accelerated. In addition to establishing services for the separate collection of organic waste, Ireland must now prioritise the development of an adequate infrastructure to treat this waste. Failure to meet Irish landfill diversion targets will result in financial penalties in the region of 180 to 270 euro million per annum (Cre, 2007). This study reviews the potential contribution of community composting initiatives towards achieving landfill diversion targets and investigates barriers to project implementation. The study assesses all aspects of community composting projects from waste collection and processing to compost production, quality assurance, utilisation, marketing, education and awareness. From 2006?2008, an organic waste composting project was established within a high-rise urban development in Ballymun, Dublin. This used in-vessel composting technology to process household organic waste to produce compost. The compost was analysed to measure chemical, physical and nutrient composition and then used in horticultural trials, at the National Botanic Gardens, Glasnevin, Dublin to quantify benefits and highlight potential applications. In addition, an education programme to encourage participation was developed, and marketing opportunities for local compost use were also assessed and defined.

Go back to top of page Top

Go back to top of page Top

Please Read Carefully Before Downloading

It is important for the EPA and the Environmental Research Community to know that the data and information products we distribute are useful to the user community we support. One way of doing this is by tracking the use of data and information in publications. Parts of or all of the datasets, data, or digital information products available here can be freely downloaded for further use in scientific applications under the condition that the source will be properly quoted in published papers, journals, websites, presentations, books, etc. Whenever possible the EPA strongly urge you to cite the use of these data, information, and web resources in the reference section of your publications. For convenience an automatically generated citation is available below which can be used immediately for citation purposes.

EPA SAFER Data Download Disclaimer: Before downloading any of the data or information objects below you are kindly asked to read the data download disclaimer Read Disclaimer (Opens in New Window). Downloading data or information objects from SAFER-Data indicates an acceptance of the data download disclaimer and the conditions outlined within it.

Suggested Citation Information

The information supplied in the table below should be provided with all citations to this electronic resource. You are requested to format each of the fields below as required by the specific bibliographical style you are using.

An example of this citation in proper usage:

Miller, S. Wyse-Jackson, P.   "Implementation of an Urban Community Composting Programme". Associated datasets and digitial information objects connected to this resource are available at: Secure Archive For Environmental Research Data (SAFER) managed by Environmental Protection Agency Ireland https://eparesearch.epa.ie/safer/resource?id=14e6d878-2b0c-102d-99dd-ef394edc666a (Last Accessed: 2024-12-14)

Permalink

Go back to top of page Top

SAFER-Data Display URL	https://eparesearch.epa.ie/safer/iso19115/display?isoID=132
Resource Keywords	commmunity composting In-vessel urban waste ballymun dublin regeneration organic biodegradable municipal
EPA/ERTDI/STRIVE Project Code	2005-WRM-MS-34-M1
EPA/ERTDI/STRIVE Project Theme	Waste and Resource Management
Resource Availability:	Public-Open
Limitations on the use of this Resource	In the event of obtaining access to datasets corresponding to this resource any datasets, data, or information resources being used in a journal article or other means of publication the original authors should be informed of this usage and an appropriate acknowledgement or citation is included within the published article. The EPA advise that this acknowledgement should take one of the following forms dependent upon how heavily the published work relates to the downloaded data: * Co-Authorship(s) for the original author(s)* Written acknowledgement within the body of the article* Written acknowledgement by means of the inclusion of a bibliography entry which clearly cites the original authors.
Number of Attached Files (Publicly and Openly Available for Download):	3
Project Start Date	Friday 1st December 2006 (01-12-2006)
Earliest Recorded Date within any attached datasets or digital objects	Friday 1st December 2006 (01-12-2006)
Most Recent Recorded Date within any attached datasets or digital objects	Thursday 11th December 2008 (11-12-2008)
Published on SAFER	Wednesday 25th November 2009 (25-11-2009)
Date of Last Edit	Monday 21st December 2009 at 11:04:54 (21-12-2009)
Datasets or Files Updated On	Monday 21st December 2009 at 11:04:54 (21-12-2009)

Go back to top of page Top

Description of Geographical Characteristics of This Project or Dataset
Following a survey of suitable study areas within Ballymun, Dublin, Ireland a comparative analysis was carried out between three potential apartment complexes in Ballymun: Gateway, Having reviewed this information, the team decided to run a pilot programme at two of the preferred sites: Santry Cross and Gateway student accommodation. Both Santry Cross and the Gateway site met the minimum requirements in relation to availability of a site for the composter and interest from management and residents. However, demographics between both residential developments varied greatly given that the Gateway accommodation was primarily targeted at students. A pilot at both sites presented an opportunity to further test the selection criteria and identify results due to demographics. Additionally, because the success of the project would be dependent on a number of influences that could be determined only by assessment of a project roll-out, the implementation at two sites allowed future flexibility within the project. Pilot participants were a 50/50 mix of those residents who expressed an interest in participating in the project, and those who had very little prior knowledge and/or interest. Residents were given the opportunity to find out about this pilot through door-to-door introductions and at an open day in a nearby hotel. To facilitate an easy to use system, it was decided to operate a weekly door-to-door collection service over 8 weeks. The project was carried out with 21 apartments in each study area. Participants left compost bags or kitchen caddies outside their front door at a prescribed date and time to be collected by the project team.

Go back to top of page Top

In this section some supplementary information about this resource is outlined. Lineage information helps us to understand why this project was carried out, what policy or research requirements did it fulfil, etc. Lineage is important in understanding the rationale behind the carrying out of a project or the collection of a specific dataset etc. Links to web sites, applications, papers, etc are outlined to provide you with additional information or supplementary reading about the project or dataset

Any links supplied by the resource owner are stored such that they will open in a new window. Following such a link may lead to a 3rd party website over which EPA has no control in regards to contents or suitability.

Go back to top of page Top

The following is a list of projects, datasets, and resources on SAFER-Data from which users downloaded attachments from soon after downloading attachments from this resource Implementation of an Urban Community Composting Programme. You can view the full description for projects, datasets, and resources by using the links supplied.

• Critical Analysis of the Potential of Mechanical Biological Treatment for Irish waste Management View Full Metadata Description
• Development of an Industry-Led Quality Standard for Source-Separated Biodegrable Material Derived Compost View Full Metadata Description
• SEA - Alternatives development for household waste management View Full Metadata Description
• Examining The Use of Food Waste Disposers View Full Metadata Description
• Economy wide material flow analysis and ecological footprint of Ireland View Full Metadata Description

Go back to top of page Top