The Solana Center for Environmental Innovation will expand composting hubs, tackle school lunch waste and divert textiles from landfills after receiving $1 million in state funding.
State Sen. Catherine Blakespear presented the check Tuesday, Oct. 27, at Coastal Roots Farm in Encinitas, where the nonprofit has run a composting operation since 2014. Jessica Toth, the center's executive director, accepted the oversized check alongside board members and volunteers, according to Blakespear's office.
Blakespear, a Democrat who represents Del Mar, Solana Beach and Rancho Santa Fe as part of Senate District 38, secured the money from the 2026-27 state budget. The grant is part of $14.5 million she directed to local programs and projects across the district, which covers northern San Diego County and southern Orange County.
The funding will support what the center calls the Full Circle Soil Project. The project aims to build composting hubs across the San Diego region, cut food waste at schools and keep used clothing out of landfills while promoting reusable products.
"Solana Center will demonstrate how to make what's possible today, practical tomorrow," Toth said in a statement from Blakespear's office.
The nonprofit, headquartered at 137 N. El Camino Real in Encinitas, has operated since 1983. San Diego County proclaimed May 11, 2024, "Solana Center Day" in recognition of the organization's four decades of environmental work.
Coastal Roots Farm served as the proving ground. In 2014, the center launched a pilot composting operation there using inedible food scraps, manure and tree trimmings from the farm and a neighboring restaurant. The resulting compost proved five times richer in nutrients than the soil amendment previously trucked in from 25 miles away, according to Blakespear's office.
Also speaking at the check presentation were Adam McCurdy, director of farm production at Coastal Roots Farm, and Ron McCord, a farmer with Good Grow Organics in Vista. McCord took composting classes at Solana Center and now works with farmers, brewers and restaurants to turn organic waste back into food-growing cycles.
Blakespear received a Healthy Soils Hero Award earlier in October from the Association of Compost Producers. She also authored a 2025 resolution designating the first week of May as Compost Awareness Week in California.
Specific schools, timelines and locations for the new composting hubs have not been announced. Residents can learn more about the Solana Center's programs at solanacenter.org.
