Wednesday, June 15, 2011
The Economics of Groundswell
During the Groundswell project the very clever Michael Reynolds agricultural economist extraordinaire was busy pouring over our budgets and crunching the numbers. You can down load his report here:
The Economics of Groundswell
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Groundswell Field Day - Goulburn District
Agronomic evaluation of the use of composted urban waste in agriculture.
The Project:
The Groundswell project aims to have farmers and Councils working together to pull urban organic waste out of the cities and back onto agricultural land, reducing organic waste going into landfill and improving agricultural soils.
Background:
Through the City to Soil process residents in Goulburn Mulwaree Shire have been provided with a combined food scrap and garden waste collection which is composted at the Goulburn Waste Management Depot. Compost made through the project has been made available for three on-farm trials in the Goulburn district. See www.groundswellproject.blogspot.com for more information.
The trials:
The agronomic evaluation has been carried out by Chris Houghton Agricultural from Crookwell. The aim is to determine how the end product can be best used:
- What happens when it is applied at various rates to agricultural land?
- Is it as a fertiliser or does it have a role as a soil conditioner?
- Does it restore soil carbon levels and/or lift moisture holding capacity or have any other unexpected benefits.
- What types of enterprises (pastures, crops, horticulture) is the compost best suited to?
- Are there any problems with its use?
- How available is the compost and where can you get it from?
Why should you attend:
You will be able to see for yourself and discuss the trial outcomes of the agronomy evaluation to date. You will also be able to speak with the people involved in the project.
DETAILS
- Date: Friday 15th October.
- Start time: 8.30am at Strathmere, Federal Highway, Yarra
- Finish: 12.30pm – 1pm at Andrew Divall’s property with a barbecue lunch provided by Goulburn Mulwaree Council.
- Travel: By private vehicles.
- RSVP: By 12 October via email on: leanne@chrishoughtonag.com.au or call/text Chris on 0409 816 433.
What the day will involve:
The day will start at Andrew Sieler’s property “Strathmere” (A on map below), at Yarra on the Federal Highway just south of the Hume Highway to the west of Goulburn. There will then be a visit to a cropping trial at Forest Lodge (B) on the Middle Arm Road, and then to the GMC Waste Depot (C) to see the compost being made. Finally we will visit another grazing trial and have lunch at Andrew Divall’s property “Narrambulla” (D), to the east of Goulburn.
Directions:
To get to Andrew Sieler’s property (A) on the Federal Highway, travel about 1.5 km south towards Canberra, and the gate is just before the Yarra “Rest Area”. Here will be a sign to get your attention.
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Back to the land!

Last month 60 tonnes of finished compost were delivered to Goulburn’s two on-farm trial sites at Narranbulla near Marulan and Strathmere at Yarra (pictured above). Last year these two properties were selected from over 20 farms who expressed an interest in participating in the trials.
The trials involve farmers setting aside approximately 12 ha (30 acres) of land. Divided into three plots, one will be left unfertilised, one treated with super phosphate and the other with Goulburn’s City to Soil compost. Stock movements through these paddocks will be monitored over the next 12 months to determine changes in the DSE (dry sheep equivalent) of each treatment. Additionally, a small area has been fenced off on each site to undertake randomised plot trials. These will assess the effect of City to Soil compost on fodder yields and soil health.
In April an audit of the City to Soil bins showed contamination levels of 0.2%. This is an outstanding result and the Goulburn community should be really proud of that effort. The main source of contamination in the City to Soil bin is plastic bags. These can not be composted and need to be removed by hand, which adds to the cost of doing the composting.
Currently the City to Soil collection is diverting over 100 tonnes of organic waste from the landfill each month. How cool is that?

And how cool is this truck thingy?
Thursday, May 21, 2009
A good day at the office!

Does it get any better than that? This is what it is all about folks!
Goulburn has officially finished their first two batches of City to Soil compost. This week we have had a visit from the "Joker" (the big green thingy) to screen the compost. This marvelous machine belongs to SoilCo.



And this photo shows the MOUNTAIN of beautiful screened compost.

And here are Wayne and Gavin, composters extraordinaire from Goulburn Mulwaree Council. I think they look like happy composters don't you?
Nice work guys!
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Farmers Join City to Soil
CAP: (l-r) Agronomist Chris Houghton, City to Soil (Groundswell) Project Manager Simone Dilkara and Andrew Sieler ‘Strathmere’, Yarra, prepare for the on-farm trial of compost.From City to Soil … farmers join unique composting trial
Two Goulburn area farmers have volunteered for a unique composting program involving organic waste from households being used to improve agricultural soils. The farmers will establish trial sites to test the benefits of compost compared to unfertilised soil and land treated with superphosphate.
Goulburn Mulwaree Council is currently preparing the compost for use on the farms. It is collected through an initiative known as City to Soil, which involves organic kitchen and garden waste being collected from some 9000 households in Goulburn and Marulan on a monthly basis.
Andrew Sieler, who runs the 600 acre fine wool property ‘Strathmere’ at Yarra, said he joined City to Soil to both support efforts to reduce landfill and assess the benefits of compost in a farm environment.
"The project has a lot of potential to remove waste from landfill and put something back into soils at the same time," Mr Sieler said. "We don’t really use compost on a larger scale and it will be interesting to see what happens. If it turns out to be commercially viable for Councils and landholders then it will benefit everyone."
The second farm involved in the trial is the 800 acre Narranbulla Partnership at Marulan. Farm Manager Mark Hart, who runs Angus cattle at Narranbulla, said involvement in City to Soil provided an opportunity to further their interest in organic fertilisers and assess the viability of compost on a commercial farm.
"We have always been interested in organic fertilisers and when we saw an Expression of Interest advertised, we thought our property would be suitable for the trial," Mr Hart said.
The on-farm trial will involve both farmers setting aside approximately 30 acres of land. This will then be divided into three plots, with one left unfertilised, one treated with the commonly used superphosphate and the other fertilised with the City to Soil compost.
Agronomist Chris Houghton will oversee the trial and assess the stocking rate of each plot, measured in DSEs (Dry Sheep Equivalent). "The three plots on each property have a uniform soil type and pasture," Mr Houghton said. "Soil tests have been taken before the trial starts and we will assess each area for carrying capacity over the next two years. Both Strathmere and Narranbulla are ideal for the on-farm trials as they have large enough areas with consistent soil. Andrew and Mark are both happy to fence off around 30 acres for the trial to take place."
Mr Houghton said the Goulburn and Marulan communities had been very supportive of the City to Soil program. Organic kitchen waste, plus garden waste, has been collected from the Goulburn suburb of Eastgrove since July this year. Specially designed kitchen waste bins are now being delivered across the remainder of Goulburn and nearby Marulan.
"I have been really impressed with the level of enthusiasm shown by the community," Mr Houghton said. "City people are interested in the whole food cycle and feel that by having their organic waste composted they are contributing to the quality of food they receive and helping farmers at the same time. Particularly with the drought we have seen in recent years, City people know that farmers do it tough and want to help."
Goulburn Mulwaree is one of four Councils involved in the City to Soil Project, which is being implemented through a project known as Groundswell. The other Council areas involved are Lachlan, Palerang and Queanbeyan.
Groundswell is funded by a $1.96 million grant over three years from the NSW Environmental Trust.
MEDIA INTERVIEWS:
Please contact:
Agronomist Chris Houghton on 0409 816 433.
City to Soil (Groundswell) Project Manager Simone Dilkara on 0447 273 099.
To arrange an interview with Andrew Sieler, please call Simone Dilkara or Goulburn Mulwaree Council’s Communications Unit on 4823 4412 or 4823 4548.
CAP: (l-r) Farm Manager Mark Hart and Andy Divall from ‘Narranbulla’, with agronomist Chris Houghton and City to Soil (Groundswell) Project Manager Simone Dilkara on the site where compost will be trialled at the Marulan property.
Goulburn Mulwaree Council
LOCKED BAG 22 GOULBURN NSW 2580
Telephone: (02) 4823 4444
Fax: (02) 4823 4456
www.goulburn.nsw.gov.au
Monday, November 17, 2008
Lots and lots of compost!
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Thursday, October 23, 2008
North Goulburn Environmental Education Afternoon
Groundswell Project Manager Simone Dilkara with Goulburn North Public students Jacqui Oberg and Jarrod Whittaker.Tuesday, October 21, 2008
City to Soil rolled out accross Goulburn Mulwaree

Goulburn Mulwaree Council’s groundbreaking City to Soil initiative will be provided across Goulburn and Marulan this month.
City to Soil is being expanded after a successful trial in Eastgrove over the past three months.
Goulburn Mulwaree Council Facilities Engineer Andrew Galland said he hoped the remainder of Goulburn and Marulan supported the program as residents had in Eastgrove.
"This will be one of the first community wide collections of compostable organic waste in Australia," Mr Galland said.
"We have been thrilled with the response to the program in Eastgrove and I hope the remainder of our community will be as supportive. City to Soil will be provided to all residents that currently have a monthly green waste collection."
Residents across Goulburn and Marulan will receive a free, specially designed MaxAir kitchen top bin and compostable biobags for the collection of food scraps. The bins, a year supply of biobags (a roll of 150 bags), a sticker and an instruction leaflet will be delivered to homes over the coming days.
"The contamination levels in the green waste we’ve collected have been extraordinarily low, which is an excellent effort from Eastgrove’s residents," Mr Galland said.
"In the first collection made in July, Council collected 9.16 tonnes of combined food and garden waste from Eastgrove, with only 7kg of contamination removed, which is unbelievably low.
Most residents should have the bins for the October green waste collection, however some residents may not receive them in time. These residents will receive their bins in time for the November green waste collection.
Compost test sites to be finalised
"We had 35 farmers who wanted to be involved in the trials and responded to the Expression of Interest," Ms Dilkara said.
"The response shows that farmers are really interested in composted products, soil health and chemical fertiliser alternatives. It shows that Goulburn Mulwaree Council is really on the right track – the community supports the project, and farmers really support the project."
MEDIA INTERVIEWS: Please contact Goulburn Mulwaree Council’s Acting Facilities Manager Andrew Galland on 02 4823 4488 or Groundswell Project Manager Simone Dilkara on 0447 273 099.
Goulburn Mulwaree Council
Telephone: (02) 4823 4444
www.goulburn.nsw.gov.au
Monday, September 1, 2008
First City to Soil PRIZE Presented
The first of two monthly City to Soil prizes has been presented to Eastgrove’s Heather Slater.
Mrs Slater was randomly selected to receive the prize – a fruit and vegetable basket - after her family correctly collected their food waste in biobags and placed it in their green waste bins.
"It’s a really good idea, especially if it’s going to help farmers," Mrs Slater said.
"It was very easy to use and there was no smell, which was a bit surprising."
Field of Dreams

Eastgrove Collection #2
The total contamination rate was 0.334% (still WAY under 1%). The addition of a concrete block in a Green Waste bin accounts for most of that weight!
Other contamination items include polystyrene, plastic bags, plastic pot and of course, that naughty piece of concrete.
Happily, there was NO contamination found in any Biobags. How do we know? Well, as the picture shows, we check!

Lots more households are using their MaxAir bins and Biobags for the collection of food scraps, and placing these in their green waste bins. Eastgrove residents are doing really well with the collection of food scraps in the Biobags.
For those who are not quite sure about the new collection, the inclusion of food scraps in the green waste collection greatly enhances the composting process, and the quality of the final product. We have fully tested the MaxAir bins and Biobags and they really truly do not smell.
In fact, we are very confident that placing your food scraps in the Biobags and then in the green waste bin will be less smelly that putting them in your ordinary garbage bin. It really is beautiful stuff.
Here is a photo of David Long from GMC spraying Eastgrove's second City to Soil collection with composting solution. The bags you can see on the pile are all Biobags, which will breakdown very quickly once the pile heats up and those lovely microbes start doing their job.

In the background, you can see our finished trial pile and on the right, last month's City to Soil collection cooking away under the plastic. After an initial spike in temperature, that pile is fermenting along nicely at around 32 degrees - even in our Southern Tablelands winter!
Many many thanks to everyone in Eastgrove for doing such a wonderful job with their new City to Soil collection.
Thursday, July 31, 2008
YIPPEE! First Collection in Eastgrove
Council’s Greenwaste truck collected 9.16 tonnes of combined Food and Garden waste from Eastgrove. This was delivered to the Goulburn Waste Depot for composting.

Photo: Eastgrove's 9.16 tonnes of combined garden and food waste
The combined food and garden waste was picked through to remove any contaminants, sprayed with a microbial composting solution, heaped into a pile and covered with plastic.

Photo: Hard at work! Picking out contaminants and spraying with microbial composting solution. (it smells like molasses!)
Between now and October the special micro-organisms in the composting solution will go to work, breaking down, pasteurising and fermenting Eastgrove’s green waste. The pile will be resprayed halfway during the process, and continually monitored to ensure that proper temperatures, moisture and ph levels are maintained.
The end result will be something like this – the most beautiful, microbially active, gorgeous compost ever.

Photo: Your project manager picking out the last of the contaminants from our composting trials. This lot is ready for shredding now. It is BEAUTIFUL STUFF!
(minus the bowling pin & straw hat of course – how did we miss that?)
Eastgrove residents are extremely good at only putting into their City to Soil collection the things that they should and nothing that they shouldn't!
Contamination levels were amazingly low. We pulled out a total of 7kg of contamination – mainly plastic bags, a few bottles and some tins.
That’s a contamination rate of 0.0764% (less than .1%!)
WELL DONE EASTGROVE!!!!!
Photo: Gerry Gillespie from DECC holding the 0.076% of contamination!Here is a picture of Gerry Gillespie from the Department of Environment and Climate Change (DECC) with our bag of contamination.
Lots of households have started using the biobags for their food scraps. We didn’t find any contamination in the biobags. There is obviously a lot of support for the project.
The first two biobags we inspected today had no contamination. These two households will receive a prize.

Photo: Hans making the final pile.

Photo: Eastgrove's City to Soil food and garden waste - all sprayed and tucked in - ready to start composting!
Here it is folks! Eastgrove's City to Soil food and garden waste, all sprayed and ready to go.
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
School visit - East Goulburn
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On Wednesday, Project Manager Simone Dilkara and Facilities Engineer Andrew Galland spoke to a number of classes at East Goulburn about the City to Soil project that began in Eastgrove this week.
They explained the City to Soil process to the students and teachers, including the collection and composting stages.
Ms Dilkara said the students showed a “fantastic” knowledge of what can and can’t be recycled or composted.
“The students asked us some really good questions and they already knew a great deal about what they can put in the bins,” Ms Dilkara said.
“The children were very enthusiastic about the program and seemed fascinated by the entire composting process. It’s very exciting from our point of view to see young children so passionate about composting and recycling.”
Eastgrove is the first Goulburn suburb to take part in the initiative, which will involve residents receiving a free, specially designed MaxAir kitchen top bin and compostable biobags for the collection of food scraps. The bins, a year’s supply of biobags (a roll of 150 bags), a sticker and an instruction leaflet were delivered to Eastgrove residents last week.
Kitchen waste, including raw or cooked food, tea bags, coffee grounds, fruit and vegetables, peelings, leftovers, paper towels, meat and fish, can all be placed in the bin. This kitchen waste then goes in the 240-litre greenwaste bins for collection – before being taken to Goulburn Waste Management Centre where it is transformed into high quality compost and provided to local farmers to help improve agricultural soils.
The introduction of the City to Soil kitchen waste collections in Goulburn Mulwaree, Lachlan, Palerang and Queanbeyan Council areas is being undertaken through a project known as Groundswell – which is funded by a $1.96 million grant over three years from the NSW Environmental Trust. Goulburn Mulwaree Council was the lead organisation in the grant application, and is the first to introduce the kitchen waste collections.
The City to Soil program will be rolled out across Goulburn and Marulan later this year.
MEDIA INTERVIEWS: Please contact Groundswell Project Manager Simone Dilkara on 0447 273 099.
Special Delivery - Eastgrove!

Apart from being very well exercised, our intrepid team finished the task on a high due to the incredibly positive feedback we received from folks we managed to talk to during the day.
People really like the project, and they like the idea of separating out their food scraps for composting rather than seeing them go into landfill. They also like the idea of helping farmers and doing something positive for the environment.
Its all good news really!
Monday, July 14, 2008
Unique kitchen waste collection kicks off in Eastgrove
Images: Goulburn locals Gemma (left) and Alicia Hollands are looking forward to helping the environment and local farmers by collecting their kitchen waste in specially designed kitchen top bins and biobags. Eastgrove residents will be the first to try a unique new kitchen waste collection designed to help the environment and local farmers at the same time.
Eastgrove has been chosen to test run Goulburn Mulwaree Council’s new City to Soil initiative, which will involve residents receiving a free, specially designed MaxAir kitchen top bin and compostable biobags for the collection of food scraps. The bins, a year supply of biobags (a roll of 150 bags), a sticker and an instruction leaflet will be delivered to homes in Eastgrove next week.
Residents will then be asked to collect kitchen waste in the bins and biobags - including raw or cooked food, tea bags, coffee grounds, fruit and vegetables, peelings, leftovers, paper towels, meat and fish. This kitchen waste then goes in the 240 litre greenwaste bins for collection – before being taken to Goulburn Waste Management Centre where it is transformed into high quality compost and provided to local farmers to help improve agricultural soils.
The Eastgrove test run will allow Council to fine tune the composting process before the collection is extended across Goulburn City and Marulan later this year.
"This is a fantastic new project and as far as I am aware, it will be the first community-wide collection of food scraps for composting in Australia," Goulburn Mulwaree Council Facilities Manager David Rayner said.
"The Eastgrove test run will help us do a final check of the composting process. But we know the process works because we have already undertaken a number of trials, and a similar process is used in around 2000 communities worldwide. The kitchen waste collections will definitely be introduced across Goulburn City and Marulan later this year.
"Currently Goulburn’s waste is disposed of at Council’s own landfill. By encouraging composting we will help combat Climate Change by cutting methane gas production, reduce waste costs by prolonging the life of the landfill and help local farmers improve agricultural soils. It really is a win-win for everyone involved," Mr Rayner said.
The introduction of the City to Soil kitchen waste collections in Goulburn Mulwaree, Lachlan, Palerang and Queanbeyan Council areas is being undertaken through a project known as Groundswell – which is funded by a $1.96 million grant over three years from the NSW Environmental Trust. Goulburn Mulwaree Council was the lead organisation in the grant application, and is the first to introduce the kitchen waste collections.
Groundswell Project Manager Simone Dilkara said the other three Council areas involved are on track to start the kitchen waste collections soon.
"Work is underway to establish composting sites in the other Council areas and we are gearing up for the new collections to start between now and the end of the year," Ms Dilkara said.
"It is really exciting that it will officially start in Eastgrove next week.
"We will also be advertising in the coming weeks for local farmers to get involved, however I have already been contacted by a number who are keen to take part. Composted kitchen and greenwaste returns organic matter, microbes and nutrients to soils, which is of enormous benefit in agricultural areas.
"The overall aim of this project is to show that organic waste can be profitably collected, composted to a high standard and returned to agricultural soils. It is also really important for the local community to know that the MaxAir kitchen top bins and biobags have been specially designed to make sure food scraps do not smell – and they really do work," Ms Dilkara said.
The benefits of the City to Soil collections include that it will:
- Support local farmers
- Reduce waste to landfill (and therefore prolong the life of Council’s landfill and save money)
- Improve agricultural soils
- Help address climate change
The City to Soil collections will encourage local residents to ‘become part of the solution’.
MEDIA INTERVIEWS:
Please contact Goulburn Mulwaree Council’s Facilities Manager David Rayner on 02 4823 4488 or Groundswell Project Manager Simone Dilkara on 0447 273 099.
MEDIA ENQUIRIES:
Please contact Goulburn Mulwaree Council’s Communications Unit on 4823 4412 or
4823 4548.
Media Link - Interest Swells in Groundswell
A program aimed at reducing green waste dumped at Goulburn Waste Depot and helping local farmers is gaining momentum – and Goulburn Mulwaree Council is leading the way.
Groundswell – City to Soil is a program that will allow Goulburn Mulwaree residents to put food scraps in a handy container which is kept in their kitchen. The container, which is lined with a special Biobag, can be emptied into the green waste bin. It is then collected, processed and made into compost, which is distributed to local farmers.
Council will lead the Groundswell project, with Palerang, Queanbeyan and Lachlan councils to take part. The project has received $1.86 million over three years from the NSW Environment Trust.
Groundswell’s Project Manager, Simone Dilkara, along with Goulburn Mulwaree Council staff and Gerry Gillespie from the NSW Department of Environment and Climate Change, have been trialling various methods to find the best composting process for the combined food and garden waste. They have also been testing the Biobags to ensure they can handle the most noxious odours.
"We have been trialling the Biobags with all the most awful things you can imagine, meat and fish bones, and they are working very well. We think that residents will be really happy with the Biobags and Maxair baskets," she said.
Ms Dilkara has a close connection with Goulburn. Born in the city, her family lived here in the 1960s and 70s, with her parents Bob and Beverley Woodman working in the area. She attended West Goulburn Primary, and was one of the first students at Wollondilly Public when it first opened.
Her family later moved to a small farm near Geary’s Gap and she has continued to work in and around Goulburn for the past 10 years, initially in the area health service as the Youth Program Coordinator and then for the NSW Premier’s Department as the project manager for the Regional Coordination Program.
"The Groundswell project combines my keen interest in sustainable agriculture, regional development and project management. It is a pleasure to be working for Goulburn Mulwaree Council on such an important project with so much potential," she said.
MEDIA INTERVIEWS: Please contact Goulburn Mulwaree Council’s Manager of Facilities David Rayner on 4823 4402 or Groundswell Project Manager Simone Dilkara on 0447 273 099.
MEDIA ENQUIRIES: Please contact Goulburn Mulwaree Council’s Communications Unit on 4823 4412 or 4823 4548.
Follow this link to see the original media release on Groundswell - City to Soil on the Goulburn Mulwaree Council website.
