The Longwood Foundation, DNREC and Constellation Energy Fund the REPLENISH Program
A Demonstration Project of EDEN Delmarva
The Wellnet Foundation is launching REPLENISH. As a demonstration project of EDEN Delmarva, REPLENISH promotes the recovery of organic materials from Rehoboth Beach restaurants for the creation of compost that helps serve local farmers with their crops.
This innovative program is funded by several grant awards, including grants from the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Program, The Longwood Foundation, and Constellation Energy’s EcoStar Program. The Rehoboth Beach Dewey Chamber of Commerce has endorsed REPLENISH.
REPLENISH is a collaboration among restaurants, haulers, a compost facility, and local farmers. Local favorites like Matt Haley at Blue Coast Restaurant, Arena’s Café, GoFish, and El Dorado have all begun to participate in diverting their organic material (table scraps). Blue Hen Disposal will be hauling the material to the compost facility at Blue Hen Organics in Dagsboro, DE. The training for the separation of organic wastes at other Rehoboth hot spots is getting underway.
The purpose is to reclaim the valuable nutrients in table scraps, to cultivate compost for local farmers, which stimulates the farmer to grow and sell produce locally, which in turn can feed the folks at the same restaurants that recover the organic material. EDEN seeks to encourage business leaders within the restaurant, resource recovery, transportation, and agricultural sectors to cultivate a paradigm shift in their business models that will be economically rewarding and good for the earth.
