COLUMBUS, Ohio — In the words of The Ohio State University scientist Fred Michel, “We need to keep organic material such as manure, yard waste and food waste out of our landfills. We need to compost it instead.”

Michel is an associate biosystems engineering professor who is co-organizing the Ohio Compost Operator Education Course March 24-25 at the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center (OARDC) in Wooster. The two-day course will teach attendees the art of breaking down waste in big volumes and how to run centralized, large-scale composting facilities.

“The types of facilities we’re talking about are for use on farms, businesses and municipalities,” he explained. “Composting allows the valuable nutrients and carbon that organic materials contain to be used again, reduces fossil fuel use for fertilizers, reduces greenhouse gas emissions from landfills and can be done economically.”

The principal aim, Michel said, is to further the knowledge of compost producers, solid waste managers, farmers and others as more organic materials are diverted from landfills.

“Nursery operators, public health officials and environmental regulators, among others, also may gain by attending,” he said.

The course will cover a range of scientific, engineering and business topics, including site design, mix preparation, compost testing, state regulations, contaminant issues, how to manage compost piles and windrows for peak aerobic conversion and the fewest odors and how to use composts to naturally reduce plant diseases and create value from waste.

“We’ll also touch on important issues such as persistent herbicides and biodegradable plastics,” Michel said.

The course will have classroom and laboratory components. The instructors will be from the college, the Ohio EPA and from industry, including CLC Labs, Barnes Nursery, KB BioEnergy and URS Corp.

“This course is designed to meet the diverse needs of the composting industry and benefit people such as compost facility operators and managers, public health officials, extension agents, farmers, nursery operators and managers, solid waste managers, composting consultants, public policy consultants, environmental regulators and equipment vendors,” Michel added.

Registration is $175 for members of the Organics Recycling Assoc. of Ohio (ORAO) and $225 for non-members. Registration includes all materials, continental breakfast and lunch. The course schedule, a registration form and lodging and other details can be downloaded at www.oardc.ohio-state.edu/ocamm/images/brochure_2015.pdf

For more information, contact Mary Wicks at wicks.14@osu.edu or 330-202-3533. Participants wishing to join ORAO and receive the discounted rate should email Marcie Kress at mkress@summitreworks.com

Continuing education units are pending approval for OEPA wastewater operator certification and for Ohio registered sanitarians. Funding support to develop the course came from the state EPA’s Ohio Environmental Education Fund.