Two neighbourhoods in Vic are hosting the pilot test of a new community composting system led by the BETA Technology Center

The neighbourhoods of Sant Llàtzer and the Four Stations of Vic will host a pilot test for the community composting of the organic fraction of waste generated in the neighbourhoods from March onwards. The main aim of this pilot test will be to evaluate the potential of this system for in situ management of the green fraction in these two neighbourhoods, and to determine whether it can be a more environmentally and economically sustainable solution than the current management system. In addition, it will test whether this model can be incorporated in cities similar to Vic in order to treat all organic waste generated in the households of some of their neighbourhoods.

The BETA Technology Center (Biodiversity, Ecology and Environmental and Food Technology)  is coordinating this pilot test involving community composting of the organic fraction as part of the DECOST (Decentralised Composting in Small to Medium Towns) European project, which the research centre at the University of Vic - Central University of Catalonia (UVic-UCC) is leading. Vic City Council is also a partner in the pilot test, which follows another similar one within the framework of the same project that began in the town of Les Masies de Roda last autumn.

Four community composting points

Four community composting points will be established at various points in the Sant Llàtzer and Quatre Estacions neighbourhoods in Vic. Each of these points will have a space for pruning remains and six compost bins - two for input and four for maturation. The input compost bins can be opened with a magnetic user identification card, so that only residents will have access to them. Users will only need to deposit the organic waste from the green fraction of orchards and gardens and organic waste in all of them, as the CT BETA will be responsible for the management and maintenance during the project.

The DECOST pilot test was presented today at one of the composting points in the Sant Llàtzer district of Vic, in front of the Casa Nova de la Torre Negra centre. The Councillor for the Environment of Vic City Council, Albert Castells, thanked UVic-UCC for choosing the city to carry out the DECOST project. He said that this project "is fully aligned with the City Council's threefold goal of reaching zero waste, reducing the generation of waste per person and improving selective collection by increasing the percentage of waste generated that is reused." Castells expressed his satisfaction "with taking a step forward in addressing the climate emergency focusing on waste and at the same time, a step towards achieving an even more sustainable and healthy city within a European pilot project."

120 families will benefit from the project

Joan Colón, a CT BETA researcher and the DECOST coordinator, explained that the aim of the project is to "promote and develop new organic matter management systems, and implement community composting at a professional level." Colón explained that in the long term, the compost bins, which have magnetic locking mechanisms, will enable a payment system for waste generation to be implemented, "so that citizens who engage in good management pay less." According to the DECOST coordinator, the four composting points that have been set up are designed so that around 120 families from the Sant Llàtzer and Quatre Estacions neighbourhoods can take part, and if the pilot test is successful, "consideration will be given to rolling it out." The pilot test is scheduled to continue until September 2022 and the CT BETA will be responsible for its professional management during this period. At the same time, however, "a team of professional managers will be established so that when it is over, the project can be continued without the management of UVic-UCC," said Colón.

The new compost bins will entail a minimal change in the day to day lives of the residents of the neighbourhoods of Sant Llàtzer and Quatre Estacions in Vic. "Citizens are usually asked to manager the waste, but not this time, as they will only have to deposit the bag of organic matter," the project coordinator explained. There is a green fraction area at each point, where people can leave leaves and small twigs left over from household pruning. In the pilot test in Vic, in addition to plant debris from orchards and gardens, the public will also be encouraged to bring "100% of the organic matter" to the compost bins. This process will last about three months, and it is expected to begin to generate compost for distribution from June or July, and work is already under way on this phase.

Jordi Collet, the Vice-Rector for Research and Knowledge Transfer at UVic-UCC, thanked Vic City Council for its willingness to work with UVic-UCC and the CT BETA. During his speech, the Vice-Chancellor highlighted the research centre's desire to "move beyond the technological dimension and work in the community" in order to address challenges such as the climate emergency and the circular economy. Collet pointed out that DECOST is a "very interesting and innovative project which can be implemented in other regions after careful evaluation." He said that this project is an example of how "research and knowledge transfer can contribute to improving people's lives while at the same time curbing climate change."

The second pilot test in Osona

This is the second community composting pilot test in the Osona region carried out by the CT BETA, after the test in Les Masies de Roda, where community composting now supplements the door-to-door compost service, and 100% of the organic waste generated in the village is treated in the municipality itself. Joan Colón emphasised that "levels of public participation are very high" in the city. Taking the door-to-door compost service and the compost bins into account, "the waste fraction fell by 75% in the first month." Together with the test under way in Vic, these pilot tests will help optimise this new system so that it can subsequently be adopted in many other similar towns and cities.

A wide-ranging project

The aim of the DECOST project is to create closed and decentralised systems for community and domestic composting, in which municipalities and residents play a key role in the recovery and output of organic waste by means of urban agriculture projects. At the same time, it also aims to improve the current collection rates of the organic fraction. Only between 33% and 36% of the organic waste generated in Catalonia is currently selectively collected.

The DECOST project, which lasts three years, is funded by the European Union through the ENI CBC Mediterranean Sea Basin Programme, which is contributing 2.7 million Euros (ME), or 90% of the total budget, which amounts to 3.1 M€. A total of eight partners are participating in DECOST, including universities, research centres and government agencies from six different countries in the Mediterranean region: apart from the CT BETA, the consortium includes the Marche Polytechnic University and the Ente di Governo Rifiuti e Risorse Idriche Basilicata in Italy, the University of Patras, in Greece, the Irbid Agriculture Directorate and the Jordan University of Science and Technology in Jordan, the Galilee Society (Arab National Society for Health Research and Services) in Israel, and the Palestine Technical University Kadoorie in Palestine.