In-Vessel Composting
Operator: Old Massett
Location: Old Massett, B.C. Canada
Feedstock: Food Waste & Green Waste
Capacity: 360 T/year
Year Installed: 2024
Project Components:
Location: Old Massett, B.C. Canada
Feedstock: Food Waste & Green Waste
Capacity: 360 T/year
Year Installed: 2024
Project Components:
Client’s Requirements
The Haida Nation needed an on-site composting solution for their local curbside residential foodscrap collection program. Old Massett is a remote reserve on Graham Island in Haida Gwaii, British Columbia. Management of organic wastes is therefore prohibitively expensive, so an efficient and reliable means of converting food waste into compost was a key goal. They also needed a solution that would be reliable during the extreme cold of winter months while having good odor control.
This project was realized in partnership and support from IZWTAG, the Indigenous Solid Waste Technical Advisory Group. The First Nations communities in British Columbia have a strong tradition of cooperation. IZWTAG, which serves as a steering committee for zero-waste initiatives and fosters collaboration among these communities. IZWTAG’s “circuit riders" provide on-the- ground support and consultation to individual communities.
Our Solution
The Earth Flow composting solution provides the Haida Nation with a completely enclosed in-vessel composting solution which takes the guesswork out of hot composting and reduces the load on busy operations teams. The Earth Flow system’s automated mixing and aeration provides optimum conditions for hot composting.
The Haida Nation purchased a 40’ Intermodal Earth Flow for their community. This is installed inside a metal building in the community, with a cold weather package for optimum winter operation. Wintertime rains are a common reality so extra rain protection for operations and storage of wood chips is helpful.
Recognizing the waste management challenges faced by rural First Nations communities, GHD, an engineering consulting group with a strong relationship with these communities, played a key role in securing a grant from the province of BC or the Canadian government. This grant funded the implementation of robust composting systems across multiple First Nations communities.
The Haida Nation chose the Earth Flow system from GMT because of:
The Haida Nation purchased a 40’ Intermodal Earth Flow for their community. This is installed inside a metal building in the community, with a cold weather package for optimum winter operation. Wintertime rains are a common reality so extra rain protection for operations and storage of wood chips is helpful.
Recognizing the waste management challenges faced by rural First Nations communities, GHD, an engineering consulting group with a strong relationship with these communities, played a key role in securing a grant from the province of BC or the Canadian government. This grant funded the implementation of robust composting systems across multiple First Nations communities.
The Haida Nation chose the Earth Flow system from GMT because of:
- Strong references
- Touring the Earth Flow system at Shenandoah National Park and strong references there.
- Bear-proof
- Proven effective in cold climates
