Genesis Reforestation Trust - Trees 4 Hawkes Bay

Putting Worms and Waste to Work

A nursery in Hawkes Bay has developed a successful worm farm trial and demonstrated to their local community the benefits of worm farming to recycle food waste.

A $4500 grant from the Zero Waste New Zealand Trust helped the Genesis Reforestation Project develop the model worm farm and educate the community about the potential for worm farming.  They held a successful open day that was attended by more than 50 people, and spoke about the project to a workshop audience at Environment Centre Hawkes Bay and to a class at Havelock North Primary School.

The project obtained 15 litre buckets through the council waste exchange, and gave them to ten Haumoana families who regularly delivered their domestic food waste for use in the worm farm. The funding helped the project to employ a part-time project manager, Michael Alebardi, to operate the worm farm on a six month trial between February and August this year. The project also had help from vounteers, and support from the region's combined council "Wipe out Waste" project, waste minimisation officer Dominic Salmon.

Council involvement included providing 12kg of tiger worms to the farm, funding publicity for the open day workshop, and education liaison and advice. Other valuable contacts included liaison with the local Biodynamic Organic Education Trust, and advice from a local worm farming consultant.

The Haumoana worm farm was developed from a small windrow bed of two square metres to about 20 square metres, made up of windrow plots, baths, concrete tubs and raised metal sheets of roofing iron.  "The bucket system for collecting the food waste works well," says GRP Trust general manager, Keith Symonds. "The vermicast harvested to date has been used for a small trial growing vegetable seedlings, and as an addition to potting mix for our native tree nursery."

The project's outcomes included a reduction of food waste to landfill of about 1.22 tonnes, and in August it was still getting 50 litres of food waste each week for the worm farm.  The education role will continue with the project involved in setting up worm farms in local schools and running quarterly on-site workshops in co-operation with WOW on how to set up worm farms and the benefits.

The project intends to develop and extend the worm farm, and investigate the commercial feasibility of selling vermicast, as well as trialling it for use as a potting mix for native trees.  They hope to increase the diversion of food waste from landfill by expanding their collection to 100 x 15 litre buckets and develop a community garden on the site for education in conjunction with local high schools.  Advice for other groups undertaking similar projects included networking with similar operations in other regions, employing a keyworker with experience in worm farming and providing the opportunity for them to visit other projects.