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the winter months, l~ollowing the 6 month curing process, the product is ready for end <br />use. The landfill is looking to use that compost material as final cover on the landfill and to <br />enhance soils on the site. The compost material will also be made available to the public for <br />use on gardens and lawns. <br /> <br />Steve Kollodge proceeded to address areas of concern. The major concern is odor <br />problems which result from poor management of compost sites. Odor problems are caused <br />by the bacteria that grow in a compost pile because it has turned anaerobic from lack of <br />oxygen. The remedy to compost piles turning anaerobic is turning the pile and keeping the <br />moisture at a proper level. If odor does become a problem, there are other processes that <br />can be utilized to reduce odors. Another concern expressed is groundwater contamination. <br />The material in a compost pile is the same material found in forests and not associated with <br />groundwater contamination. Some studies have been done on composting projects and <br />they indicate that there have not been significant contamination problems because of <br />composting sites. Steve noted that there are monitoring wells in the vicinity of the <br />· proposed composting site that are capable of detecting any contamination due to the <br />composting facility. <br /> <br />CITIZEN INPUT <br /> <br />Sharon Dahlgren - 6328 143rd Lane N.W. - Inquired as to the proposed composting <br />method. <br /> <br />Steve Kollodge - Replied that the proposed compost method is the Rutger University <br />method, Iow level technology. <br /> <br />Sharon Dahlgren - Noted that Rutger has no research information regarding composting <br />grass clippings and inquired if Waste Management is relying solely on Rutger's research. <br /> <br />Steve Kollodge - Replied that because of the high moisture content in grass, it is <br />responsible for a lot of the odor problems at a composting site. To remedy this, it is <br />proposed to place the grass clippings on the outer edges of the piles. <br /> <br />Sharon Dahlgren - Inquired as to how often the piles will be turned. <br /> <br />Steve Kollodge - Replied that typically, piles are turned once a month. The piles will be <br />monitored for temperature, oxygen and pH. <br /> <br />Sharon Dahlgren - Stated that she has found in her research that Rutger's manual is in the <br />process of being rewritten. In order to minimize odors it is being recommended that one <br />part grass be mixed with 3 parts leaves and initially the piles should be turned once a week <br />for two weeks and ever), 10 days following that. The only way to achieve thorough <br />turning is with a windrow machine. Sharon explained that this method is being used in <br />Morris County, New Jersey, a 40,000 ton compost site, and there have been no complaints <br />about the operation. Sharon stated that without the proper mix of ~ass and leaves, there <br />wilt be odor problems no matter what the temperature and moisture levels are. Sharon <br />stated that yard waste is a large percent of municipal waste and people are looking to <br />recycle but there is not enough technolog3' available to indicate a successful compost project <br />of this size can be developed using a front end loader. <br /> <br />Planning & Zoning Commission Public Hearin~February 6, 1990 <br /> Page 2 of 7 <br /> <br /> <br />