Promoting Decentralized Composting: Sustainable Fairs and Gardens Project

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by GIZ Brasil ProteGEEr, Ecoss Ambiental

Pátio da Lapa São Paulo - Row at rest

Hélinah Cardoso

The Sustainable Fairs and Gardens Project was implemented by the city of São Paulo in partnership with the Municipal Urban Cleaning Authority (Amlurb), the Lapa Regional Government and Inova. The development began in 2015 with a pilot project in the Lapa neighborhood. The objective was the implementation of composting yards in the municipality, in the vicinity of the generating nuclei, as a way of demonstrating the feasibility of carrying out decentralized treatment of organic waste. The waste comes from tree pruning and flea markets. They are treated and returned in the form of quality compost to the municipality, which contributes to the reduction of waste disposed of in landfills. The method used is known as Static Windrows with Passive Ventilation, created by the Federal University of Santa Catarina (UFSC) and Cepagro (Center for the Promotion and Study of Agriculture).

Last update: 21 Oct 2020

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Context

Challenges addressed

Lack of infrastructure

Scale of implementation

Local

Ecosystems

Area-wide development

Buildings and facilities

Theme

Sustainable financing

Cities and infrastructure

Health and human wellbeing

Sustainable livelihoods

Waste management

Location

São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil

South America

Impacts

All the material composted by the project was diverted from the municipality's landfill, contributing to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. The resulting compost production is partially used for public green spaces (30 tons/month). Another part goes to the production of plants that complement the work on the site. The production is about 6,000 plants per month, used in public green spaces in the municipality or donated to interested residents. In addition, the composting yards have an educational character, receiving school students for visits and classes in the field to learn about and understand the composting process. The project also contributes to lower costs for the vendors, avoiding the payment of garbage collection fees for the flea markets. To collect the waste, the company responsible for the city's street cleaning services provides the vendors with containers for separating organic waste. Finally, the initiative optimizes transport logistics: it allows organic waste to be treated and cycled locally and increases the useful life of landfills.