Master Composters of Bernalillo County share about how home composting helps residents to recycle organic material on-site rather than contributing to a landfill. We are a volunteer organization affiliated with the Bernalillo County Cooperative Extension Service and New Mexico State University College of Agriculture. We are Master Composters dedicated to teaching composting skills and science, especially to those who live in high desert climates. We offer free classes for the public as well as training for those who wish to become Master Composters
Mission Statement
The mission of the Master Composter Program in Bernalillo County is to educate interested citizens on how to voluntarily channel organic home waste into a beneficial resource. This mission is accomplished by the training of volunteer educators who then are available for the community to teach, encourage and support citizens in the science, materials and methods of home composting. Vision Statement
That all interested citizens of Bernalillo County have the opportunity to easily get information, training and support in the science, materials and various methods of home composting. Master Composter training is an active program in several hundred locations in the USA and Canada (1996 Survey). The first USA program was established in Seattle, WA, in 1986 and remains a role model for other programs. x
There was a program in Albuquerque in the early 1990s but it only lasted a few years. Then, after a sixteen year hiatus, the program was reactivated in the Spring of 2010. This was accomplished with the support and collaboration of Albuquerque Area Extension Master Gardeners, the Bernalillo County Co-op Extension Service, the City of Albuquerque Solid Waste Management Department, NM Recycling Coalition, the NM Environment Department Solid Waste Bureau, and Soilutions, Inc.. The 2010 program was supported, in part, by a grant from the Rio Grande Basin Initiative. The grant was written by Joran Viers, then Bernalillo County Extension Horticulture Agent. John Zarola provided the inspiration and energy and hard work to bring these entities together to start the program and to organize the first training. We have held similar trainings most years since then. In October, 2010, we formed an association to provide a structure for the support and maintenance of the Master Composter education program and its graduates. In October, 2011, we were granted 501(c)(3) nonprofit status by the IRS. Between 2010 and 2019, Master Composter trainings were class-based. We offered trainings in the spring or fall of most of these years. In 2020, we took a year off from offering the training because of the covid pandemic. In 2021, we initiated mentor/apprentice trainings. Master Composters teach composting in schools, organizations, and at special events in the middle Rio Grande region.
