Thank You to Our Members

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our members for supporting the US Composting Council with your energy, time and funds. Each and every time you renew your membership, you are choosing to say "YES” to the Compost Industry. We, as an organization, would not exist as we are without the funding you provide us through your membership dues. Each year, the USCC’s Board, Staff, and Committees seek to connect our members with community and resources. This year we have focused on several key deliverables from our Strategic Plan. 
 
At the forefront we have strived to advocate for the compost industry on local and national levels. The COMPOST Act got us a seat at the table and, though it was not funded, it has given us opportunities for inclusion in the Build Back Better bill and the Farm Bill (2022). Beyond our work with the US Composting Infrastructure Coalition and national advocacy, we have rebuilt our advocacy web pages and launched our Advocacy Toolkit. 

Model Rules and Model Zoning efforts produced templates for zoning and operating compost facilities in the US. Several U.S. states (including Maryland, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, Missouri, Mississippi) have used or are using this template or portions of to update their compost permitting regulations.

The USCC’s Corporate Compost Leadership Council (CCLC) has funded and launched the Target Organics Hub, a collection of resources designed to educate people on how to start a compost operation in partnership with a municipality. The CCLC has also funded an Composting Industry Economic Study that is currently underway. This study will give the industry our first look at the environmental and economic impacts that compost manufacturing has in the United States. Because of this effort, our advocacy efforts will have hard data to back up what we already know, that compost is an economic and environmental multitool that should be ubiquitous nationwide. 

This year, we have hosted 10 webinars covering subjects from Municipal Parks & Composting to a three-part series on compostable products aimed at compost manufacturers. We also hosted almost a dozen happy hours, some with a round table setting sponsored by Komptech Americas as well as monthly Young Professionals Group happy hours. Our virtual annual conference COMPOST2021 was attended by 500 people and delivered countless networking opportunities. 

Our members are better together than they are alone and we work to make networks and connections wherever possible. 

Your membership dues dollars support all of this work, with membership accounting for about one-third of the USCC’s annual operating budget including paying staff and contractors.  

We have so much to be thankful for, and I want to say thank you to each and every one of our members for making this possible. It is through your membership and participation that we can continue to advocate for the compost industry.

I hope to see ya’ll in Austin for our 30th annual conference, trade show and equipment demo day. Wishing you all a happy and healthy holiday season.

– Frank Franciosi