Ottawa—The green bin that goes to the curb on garbage day can play an important role in improving soil health across Canada, says Susan Antler, Executive Director of the Compost Council of Canada.People need to understand that the green bin is not about waste management but the opportunity to “have a role to play in terms of getting this valuable, rich, organic matter back to the soil,” she told a Senate agriculture hearing on a national soil policy.Canadians have to understand that the soil is important and the compost that comes from organics recycling stays within their community. “We cannot ship this around the world to have it dealt with by others.“That's exciting because the work we're doing individually will allow us to go ahead and make a magnificent difference in terms of what we all should have as our legacy in terms of care for our planet.”The green bin is a way for everyone to contribute to returning valuable organic matter to the soil, Antler said. Municipalities need to have robust and sound infrastructure because “it's a very tough business to have a composting or anaerobic digestion facility.”The Compost Council of Canada has been advocating for 30 years for infrastructure “to transform what would otherwise be waste into living, breathing, rich organic matter — compost —and returning these resources to our soils, where they nurture and enhance life.”Last spring, it and the Soil Conservation Council of Canada released a report entitled Recruiting Soil to Tackle Climate Change: A Roadmap for Canada. “We need to recruit and mobilize each and every Canadian to help take care of our soils,” she said. “After all, we will each get something significant out of this: healthier food, cleaner water, a more stable climate and the preservation of our earth's many magnificent ecosystems.”Glenn Munroe, Manager of Special Projects for the Compost Council, said Canada needs an ecosystem approach to soil management. “We all have to appreciate, even more fully, the complexity and the dynamic nature of living soil ecosystems. As a society, all land managers must be recruited - our farmers, home gardeners and landscapers are all important.“Every farm, landscape and garden is going to be different, and each will require its own specific soil health best management practices, but these principles are always the same. Making them the norm in soil management will be the key to achieving healthier soils and higher levels of soil carbon, Munroe said.Canada needs to act now to develop a soil health strategy that ensures consistency and scientific credibility. “There is enough information to back up a strategy. Now we must address the challenges to adoption, including short-term costs, financial risks associated with change, adapting our technologies and, last but not least, adjusting our mindsets.”Compost has a key role for compost in soil health because it “has the unique ability to inoculate soils, building and/or refreshing the soils' essential micro-biome,” Antler added.