Grant Award to Composting Council Foundation Funds Development of Professional Composter Certification
03/12/2015 12:39 PM
The 11
th Hour Project has awarded the Composting Council’s Research and Education Foundation(CCREF) a $75,000 grant that lead the way toward professionally certified compost facility managers and facilitate the expansion of the compost industry.
By 2017, compost facility operators can join other professions with credentials as CPC, or Certified Professional Composters, escalating the profile of an industry that already has hundreds of facilities in the U.S. The 11th Hour Project, a program of the Schmidt Family Foundation, seeks projects that cultivate conservation of natural resources.
“This program will provide assurance to regulators, facility owners and the public that operators have the technical knowledge and skill sets necessary for the successful management of compost facilities,” said Ginny Black, Chair of the Composting Council Research and Education Foundation, which will manage the project. .
Achieving certification will mean a facility operator is qualified—after demonstrating through education, experience and testing –to run or work at a modern composting facility. The grant empowers the Foundation to recruit a professional certification body to manage the certification process, and to develop standards and testing.
Currently, the only certification available to organics professionals is from the Solid Waste Association of North America, and focuses on program management rather than facility operation.
About the Composting Council Research and Education Foundation
The Composting Council Research and Education Foundation supports initiatives that enhance the stature and practices of the composting industry by supporting scientific research, increasing awareness, and educating the public to advance environmentally and economically sustainable organics recycling.
About the 11th Hour Project
A program of The Schmidt Family Foundation, The 11th Hour Project promotes a more responsible relationship with the world’s water, energy, and food resources by championing a fuller understanding of the impact of human activity within the web of interdependent living systems.