Largest privately owned composting facility in eastern Canada
Advanced screening & separation technology for enhanced compost quality
Reduced compost processing time and enhanced product quality
Advanced odour treatment
In 2016, AIM Environmental Group (AIM) took over operations and maintenance of the HRM-owned existing Ragged Lake composting facility in Goodwood, NS, that had commenced operations in 1998. This was one of two existing operating composting facilities within HRM managing a combined 50,000 tonnes per year of residential and commercial organic waste generated in the municipality In 2017, HRM commenced the process to replace its two ageing composting facilities via an RFQ process followed by a subsequent RFP process for the pre-qualified parties.
In 2021, a consortium of AIM Environmental Group (AIM) and Maple Reinders was awarded a 25+ year Design, Build, Own, Operate and Transfer (DBOOT) contract for a new 60,000 tonne per year organic composting facility, to be constructed adjacent to the existing Ragged Lake facility. As part of the project, AIM also entered into an Interim Services Agreement with HRM to continue to operate both the existing Ragged Lake facility and the existing Burnside composting facility in Dartmouth, NS, until the new facility was operational.
The new facility is modelled on AIM’s existing facilities in Hamilton, Guelph and Calgary and involves fully enclosed in-vessel aerated static pile composting, including in-vessel maturation. AIM also included its most sophisticated compost screening and product refinement process into the new facility, which is readily expandable to 75,000 tonnes per year.
For this new facility, AIM’s scope of supply includes: the supply of aerobic composting process technology; design, supply and installation of material handling, shredding, screening, and product refinement technologies; process ventilation and odour control; commissioning and performance testing; acceptance of performance guarantees; and operations and maintenance services for 25+ years.
Unique features
The HRM Organics Management Facility in Nova Scotia, NS, commissioned in 2024, is a leading technically advanced fully enclosed in-vessel composting facility constructed in Canada and the first to also employ in-vessel aerated static pile compost maturation to shorten the total processing time while also enhancing product quality. Further, the facility is the first to employ AIM’s comprehensive multi-step product refinement process involving the use of extensive screening and separation technologies to remove both light and heavy contaminants to further enhance the quality of the finished compost. Finally, the facility is the first to be equipped with 33% redundancy in odour treatment capacity to ensure the facility does not create any off-property odour concerns.