VENTURA : $100,000 Approved for Compost Project
The city of Ventura will spend $100,000 to fund a six-month pilot project to compost sewage sludge.
About 500 tons of solid waste will be combined with wood chips and allowed to decompose for about two months, said Jim Willett, who owns Agrotech, a Playa del Rey-based soil company that has been contracted to carry out the program.
The soil will then be taken to flower farms in Ventura County and used as a soil enhancer, Willett said. “It’s not rich enough to be considered a fertilizer, but it does have some nutrient qualities to it,” he said.
The Ventura City Council unanimously approved funding the project at Monday’s council meeting.
The program will allow the city to test whether there is a market for composting sludge for agricultural use, said Dan Rayburn, the city’s sanitation superintendent.
It will also help the city meet state mandates to reduce landfill use 25% by 1995, Rayburn said.
The program will take place at the city’s waste water reclamation plant at 1400 Spinnaker Drive beginning Monday.
If a market can be found for composted sludge, the city will make the program permanent, Rayburn said.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
