Design and Process 

At a site behind Royal City Brewing in Guelph is a community compost system designed and installed by Karen Houle of The Compost Queens in partnership with the brewery. The compost system has three tiers and uses gravity to help rotate the materials over time. Organic brown and green “waste,” such as food scraps, wood shavings, spent grains, and coffee grinds, is welcome from all surrounding businesses. Once composted, the compost is available to the wider community to use in the neighbourhood, including at a small pollinator garden created by the Yorklands Green Hub that is located beside the compost system. 

Community Collaboration

The community compost system allows individuals and businesses in the Ward Neighbourhood of Guelph to divert waste and, at the same time, contribute to the creation of healthy compost used in the neighbourhood to amend soil and contribute to plant and ecosystem health. Volunteers helped build the compost system, and the “soil machine” continues to be a community asset to support environmental responsibility and collective action for the public good.  

To learn more about the Community Compost Systems, visit the Art of Soil Collective website.

 Photos c/o The Art of Soil Collective