I've been in contact with a woman named Casey who has some ideas in her head. She works for king county waste water and she is in the position to possibly offer a new compost option. I've told her about the farm and she wants to hear more.
Background: King County waste takes all of the sewer waste that we create, puts it in a year long process of mulching and basically composts the crap out of it with sawdust. Some tests show this to have a lower level of toxins than cedar grove which, while certified organic, receives ALL clippings etc from Seattle and composts for 6 months. Unfortunately, it still gives people the heebie jeebies.
Tacoma already fully utilizes the waste compost they create and sells it to gardens there. It hasn't caught on in Seattle and Casey is trying to get the word out about this great possibility. She is also interested to be in discussion about cost, transportation, etc. This could be really cheap option!!! Especially with an acre on the horizon???
She would really like for us to take a tour there so we can understand the process and not be scared of this HUMAN MANURE!
What do you think? Interested? Get back to me.
Thanx!
Lydia
From: "Plank, Casey" <Casey.Plank@kingcounty.gov>
To: Lydia Caudill <isa101799@yahoo.com>
Sent: Wed, March 3, 2010 4:09:14 PM
Subject: RE: Water and gro-co
Lydia-
Thanks so much for all of this- apologies for taking so long to get back to you-
Amazing info- as a starting spot, it would be great if you could incorporate a tour of the wastewater treatment plant into your curriculum.
That might really help you get a feel for the experience based curriculum options. I would be happy to talk with you about this and see what comes to mind.
The tour would also be a good starting spot to understand why I want to push harder to get more people using groco. Would any of the other students that work on the farm be interested in touring one of the treatment plants and possibly checking out the Tagro system in Tacoma ? If I could incorporate a thorough education plan into this I would be willing to work with Sawdust Supply- the company that processes our biosolids into the Groco compost – to see about donation quantities. I know they do this and would likely be willing to do more, I would just need to be able to justify the coordination work on my part to make it happen. We can talk about details of transportation, cost, etc.
Let's talk. Let me know what times generally work for you-
My office phone is 206-263-6028
My cell is 206-607-7717- feel free to call after work hours and if I don't answer just let me know how late I can call you back, etc.
On a personal level I am really interested in your Burst for Prosperity project- Duncan told me a little bit about it.
And as far as the 'spring into bed' event- can you give me more details as you have them?
Thanks!
Casey
Casey Plank
Education and Public Involvement
Wastewater Treatment Division
King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks
KSC-NR-0505 -201 S. jackson Street - Seattle , WA 98104
206-263-6028
http://www.kingcounty.gov/environment/wtd/Education.aspx
From: Lydia Caudill [mailto:isa101799@yahoo.com]
Sent: Wednesday, February 24, 2010 4:16 PM
To: Plank, Casey
Cc: Duncan Clauson
Subject: Water and gro-co
Hello Casey,
I received your information from a classmate of mine, Duncan Clausen. As he is aware of several of my interests, he gave me a heads up on how our projects could over lap.
I am actively involved with the urban farm systems and programs, in various ways, and he had mentioned you were interested in looking at new ways to put your compost, gro-co, out into the public.
Several things come immediately to mind:
--- There is a festival being coordinated by Cascade Edible Landscaping, called "Spring Into Bed" where they are trying to modivate the city to make as many vegetables beds as possible.
---I also am involved with the UW Urban Farm, and they need compost both currently, and in the future, because they are in the process of expanding their land and acquiring an acre, in which case soil augmentation of all kinds, including compost, would be very helpful.
---Also, my senior project is working with Burst for Prosperity and their Refugee Farming Project. Groups of Burundi and Somali-Bantu are starting a farm to try to build self-sufficiency, and with limited resources, so any help would be appreciated.
These are ideas off the top of my head, but there are many ways for you to introduce your compost to new users in Seattle . With more information, I could more appropriately give you recommendations. Such as, how much will it cost? How much can you provide? Are you providing transportation?
And lastly, my classmates and I are facilitating a Water Seminar for our major, Community, Environment and Planning, and other interested UW students. We are in the process of putting together an experience based curriculum and Duncan said you might have water curriculum material we could use. Also, we want to incorporate three field trips into the quarter, and we are curious what it would look like to visit the Waste Water management center. Is that an option?
This is a long email! Thank you for your interest in sharing information and resources with the community. Hopefully this gave you an idea of what I am doing and how we might be able to work together. Please ask any questions you have, and I'll do my best to answer them.
Look forward to hearing from you,
Lydia Caudill
206.450.3361
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