RESIDENTS of Block ‘CC’, Mon Repos, East Coast Demerara recently reaped the rewards of their composting efforts when they were able to gather the compost they made.

Under the Clean Green Guyana Campaign, administered by the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development, and funded by the Inter-American development Bank (IDB), a number of Block ‘CC’ residents learnt the heap composting method from local composting expert, Mr. Rufus Lewis.

Mr. Lewis visited the area several times over the last six weeks and worked closely with the residents to show them how they could turn their kitchen and yard waste into a product called compost that could be used as a soil enhancer.

As part of this project, residents of Block ‘CC’ placed their kitchen and yard waste in a community compost heap, following the process supervised by Mr. Lewis.

Composting is often described as nature’s way of recycling as the process converts organic waste into a valuable product instead of disposing of organic waste by undesirable means such as dumping or burning. Composting organic waste leads to cleaner healthier communities.
Further, by separating and diverting organic waste for composting, the life of the landfill is extended.

Community resident Mr. Hiralal Bissessar said that residents were pleased to learn how to compost and hoped to continue to do so in their backyards.
He noted that the project progressed smoothly and that residents experienced no bad odours or presence of pests due to the compost heap, as a result of Mr. Lewis’s constant supervision of the process.