Composting industry says safety a priority following deaths

Composting industry says safety a priority following deaths

By Editorial Staff, Resource Recycling

In the wake of two deaths that occurred at a Bakersfield, California composting facility, a trade organization representing the industry says that it's committed to safety.

Earlier this month, two brothers were killed after inhaling toxic fumes at Community Recycling & Resource Recovery Inc.'s facility, causing the company to come under heightened scrutiny [1] and prompting calls from an elected official to shut it down all together [2].

"Safety must always be a priority in compost manufacturing, and the USCC is committed to learning as much as possible about the conditions that led to these events, so that similar occurrences can be prevented in the future," said US Composting Council President Frank Franciosi said in a prepared statement. "The industry has an exemplary safety record and should be held as a good example providing safe and environmentally beneficial services for communities across the country."

The USCC also notes in a statement that it provides training on worker safety every year at its annual conference and also offers a free safety manual [3]. The council has also states that it's willing to help the investigation into the incident in any way it can.

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