The City of Hilliard Sustainability Plan

Hilliard Sustainability PlanECON. EXECUTIVEENERGY DEV. &SOCIAL SUMMARY WASTE EQ.REDUCTIONFranklin County FairgroundsThe Franklin County Fairgrounds, located near Old Hilliard,is owned and operated by the Franklin County AgriculturalSociety. Though the Society’s website does not publicize avision statement or mission, it does proudly note that theFranklin County Fairgrounds has been home to the County’s4-H affiliate for over 90 years. xliii 4-H has extensive programmingfor youth on, among other topics, environmental science,recycling, and composting. xliv Tom Archer, Ph.D., is the State4-H Leader, and he also serves as Assistant Director of The OSUExtension. As the local home of 4-H and with an OSU Extensionconnection to use, the Franklin County Agricultural Societyand the City of Hilliard have many reasons to work together topromote composting at the Fairgrounds.their food waste to these composting bins, and it couldestablish a system among its twenty members to servicethem so that composting does not stop because ofinaction or disinterest. Parties Responsible: As the chiefexecutive of the fair’s host City, Hilliard’s Mayor and theChair of the Environmental Sustainability Commissionshould contact the President of the Agricultural Society’sBoard of Directors in order to begin this conversation andexplore common interests in this goal. Cost: As explainedin previous recommendations, the costs associatedwith constructing composting bins range dependingon the type of material used. Using volunteers to turn and wetthe compost will minimize maintenance costs while reinforcingindividuals’ knowledge of and confidence in composting.» The Hilliard Environmental Sustainability Commission and the City’sDepartment of Parks and Recreation should install composting binsin the City’s three community gardens. The group should solicitdonated materials and funds, and members of the Commissionand of the community gardens should work together to constructthe bins. The Commission’s Chair and Vice Chair, respectively,should coordinate a team of Commission and garden membersto facilitate the securing materials, construction, and ongoing useof composting bins at community garden sites. Organic waste,materials, and weeds can be placed in the composting bins inorder to create rich soil to put back into the gardens. Compost willreduce and potentially eliminate the need for fertilizers and othersoil amendments. The public demonstration of this project wouldalso provide to community gardeners who are wary of installingat-home compost bins a place to ecologically and convenientlydispose of their household organic waste. Parties responsible:Leaders of the Environmental Sustainability Commission, the CityDepartment of Parks and Recreation, and local leaders from theircommunity garden networks should meet and delegate authorityfor securing materials, constructing the bins, and distributinginformational literature about composting bins in the communitygardens. Cost: As explained in previous recommendations, the costsassociated with constructing composting bins range dependingon the type of material used. Aside from staff time spent on theseprojects, no additional costs will be incurred. Volunteers shouldbe recruited to turn and wet the compost in order to minimizemaintenance costs.32