USCC's 20th Annual Conference & Trade Show sees more than 800 attendees

The US Composting Council's 20th Annual Conference and Trade Show was another huge success this year, according to the organization. Over 800 composting and organics recycling professionals and more than 100 exhibitors attended the show in Austin, Texas. Hosted by 51 sponsors, the Annual Conference also attracted a national and international audience, with representatives from nearly every state and many countries including; Australia, Canada, Columbia, China,  Germany, Mexico, Nigeria, and the UK.   

Among this year's conference highlights were awards presented for outstanding achievements in the composting industry:      

2011 Special Services Award: Jim McNelly. Jim has been involved with organics recycling for over 35 years. He holds five compost/organics recycling patents and was the creator and moderator of the USCC list serve for eight years.  

Hi Kellogg Award for Outstanding Service to the Composting Industry: Michele Young. Michele is the Organics Manager for the San Jose, CA Environmental Services Dept. She has been instrumental in organics recycling program development and education for many years, both in CA and throughout the US.  

Rufus Chaney Award for Research Excellence: Craig Cogger, Ph.D., Washington State University. Dr. Cogger has been on staff at WSU for 27 years. He has completed numerous research projects and published many papers demonstrating the benefits of compost use.  

Composter of the Year Award: McGill Environmental Systems. McGill was founded in 1991 and currently operates 6 facilities in the US and Ireland. They have 3 facilities enrolled in the USCC's STA Program, including their Delway facility which was a founding participant in 2000. They recycle over 4 million tons of organic feedstocks annually.    

The H. Clark Gregory Award: Sustainable Sites Initiative (Lady Bird  Johnson Wildflower Center, ASLA & the US Botanic Garden), accepted by Danielle Pieranunzi, Director. Sustainable Sites has established a rating and certification system for landscapes, similar to LEED for buildings. Compost is an integral part of their guidelines.     

Clean Water Award: Barrie Cogburn (TxDOT). Barrie teamed up with TCEQ several years ago to create and implement an innovative compost specification and use program for TxDOT, requiring USCC STA ONLY compost on TxDOT projects. TxDOT is the largest user of compost in the US as a result.  

The USCC also says their 2012 'demo day' was the largest to date. This year's demo showcased 31 pieces of equipment from 23 manufacturers, and drew hundreds of attendees to the Texas Disposal System's amazing composting and recycling facility.   

AT this year's demo, attendees saw:

• Grinding and shredding equipment from; Bandit, Continental Biomass, Diamond Z, DoppstadtUS, Dura Tech, Komptech, Morbark, Peterson Pacific, Rotochopper and Vermeer   

• Screening equipment from; CEC, DoppstadtUS , Komptech, McCloskey International, Power Screen, Terra Select and Vermeer  

• Compost turning equipment from; Backhus,Komptech, Midwest Biosystems, Scarab and Vermeer  

• Mixing equipment from Supreme and ROTO-MIX

• Compost Application equipment from EcoLawn & Kuhn Knight

• Compost bagging equipment from Rotochopper

• Odor Control Systems from NCM Odor Control    

The 2013 USCC Conference & Trade show is scheduled for January 28-31, at the Buena Vista Palace Hotel & Spa in Orlando, Florida. Visit www.compostingcouncil.org or call the USCC at 631.737.4931 for more information.