The main aim of this book is to bridge the gap between aerobic and anaerobic waste treatments by concentrating on studies of earthworms. In particular, vermicomposting is being discussed as well as its properties and applications. Other subjects touch on the treatment of palm oil mill effluents, the various importance of earthworms, its scope and future aspects of earthworm research, and the impact of waste management practices on human health.
Exploring the dramatic growth and changes in the field of vermicomposting since 1988, this comprehensive review assesses the advancements made in government-funded projects in the U.S. and UK. It discusses outdoor and indoor windrows, container systems, wedge systems, and low labor-requirements. It also examines fully-automated continuous flow vermicomposting reactor systems that can process more than 1000 tons of organic wastes per reactor. The book highlights the science and biology behind the use and efficacy of vermicomposting and details the technology of the past, present, and future.
Choice Reviews, Outstanding Academic Title Techniques and systems for processing food scraps, manure, yard debris, paper, and more Turning waste into wealth sounds too good to be true, but many worm farmers are finding that vermicomposting is a reliable way to do just that. Vermicast—a biologically active, nutrient-rich mix of earthworm castings and decomposed organic matter—sells for $400 or more per cubic yard. Compare that to regular compost, sold at about $30 a cubic yard, and you’ll see why vermicomposting has taken root in most countries and on every continent but Antarctica. Vermicomposting is also one of the best sustainable solutions for organic waste management. Vermicomposting manure and crop wastes on farms improves crop yields while reducing demand for off-farm inputs. Vermicast has higher nutrient levels and lower soluble salt content than regular compost, and it improves soil aeration, porosity, and water retention. Plus, vermicast suppresses plant diseases and insect attacks. Municipalities, businesses, community gardens, schools, and universities can set up vermicomposting operations to process food residuals and other waste materials. The Worm Farmer’s Handbook details the ins and outs of vermicomposting for mid- to large-scale operations, including how to recycle organic materials ranging from food wastes and yard trimmings to manure and shredded office paper. Vermicomposting expert Rhonda Sherman shares what she has learned over twenty-five years working with commercial worm growers and researchers around the world. Her profiles of successful worm growers across the United States and from New Zealand to the Middle East and Europe describe their proven methods and systems. This book digs into all the details, including: Choosing the right production system Regulatory issues and developing a business and marketing plan Finding and managing feedstocks Pre-composting: why and how to do it Monitoring an active worm bed Harvesting, screening, testing, packaging, and storing vermicast Markets for earthworms and vermicast Food security: how vermicast benefits soils and plants Keys to success: avoiding common pitfalls From livestock farms and restaurants to colleges, military bases, and prisons, Sherman details why and how commercial-scale vermicomposting is a fast-growing, sustainable solution for organic waste management. The Worm Farmer’s Handbook is the first and only authoritative how-to guide that goes beyond small-scale operations and demystifies the science and logistics of the fascinating process that is vermicomposting.
Conferentieverslagen over: omzetting van dierlijk en menselijk afval door wormen, beheerstechniek betreffende deze omzetting, wormen als diervoeder, inschakeling van wormen bij de produktie van plantengroeimedia, wormen voor bodemverbetering, wormen als indicatoren voor milieuverontreiniging A collection of conference reports on the vermicomposting of human and animal waste, the production of hormone like compounds by worms, worms as soil improvers and worms as indicators of soil pollution
Advanced Organic Waste Management: Sustainable Practices and Approaches provides an integrated holistic approach to the challenges associated with organic waste management, particularly related to sustainability, lifecycle assessment, emerging regulations, and novel approaches for resource and energy recovery. In addition to traditional techniques, such as anaerobic digestion, composting, innovative and emerging techniques of waste recycling like hydrothermal carbonization and vermicomposting are included. The book combines the fundamentals and practices of sustainable organic waste management with successful case studies from developed and developing countries, highlighting practical applications and challenges. Sections cover global organic waste generation, encompassing sources and types, composition and characteristics, focus on technical aspects related to various resource recovery techniques like composting and vermicomposting, cover various waste-to-energy technologies, illustrate various environmental management tools for organic waste, present innovative organic waste management practices and strategies complemented by detailed case studies, introduce the circular bioeconomy approach, and more. Presents the fundamentals and practices of sustainable, organic waste management, with emerging regulations and up-to-date analysis on environmental management tools such as lifecycle assessment in a comprehensive manner Offers the latest information on novel concepts and strategies for organic waste management, particularly zero waste and the circular bioeconomy Includes the latest research findings and future perspectives of innovative and emerging techniques of waste recycling, such as hydrothermal carbonization and vermicomposting
This book provides updated and comprehensive information on the effective functioning of earthworms used alone or in combination with other biological systems/microbes, as well as factors affecting the process and performance of vermiremediation under a range of conditions. It also compares earthworm assisted vermifiltration with other conventional biochemical methods. Presenting cutting-edge research on the earthworm assisted remediation of industrial and municipal effluents and sludges, along with its role in solid waste management (SWM), the book will benefit readers from the research community and industrial sector alike, familiarizing them with the latest remediation techniques for wastewater and different types of solid waste.
Organic waste composting is another excellent example to demonstrate the power and the benefits of nexus thinking. Even though organic waste composting itself is not a new topic, those who want to start a new project or align an ongoing project with nexus thinking, find it difficult to gather the necessary information. With nine case studies from four continents, this book aims to fill above gap in literature. While current literature on composting is often found to be limited to either soil/agriculture sector or waste management sector, this book presents a combined point of view. This open access book starts with an introductory chapter that describes the need to bring the waste management aspects and soil nutrient management aspects of compost production into one integrated theme. The relevance of nexus thinking and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are also presented in this introduction. The first three chapters after the introduction covers composting from the solid waste management and its policy aspects, taking examples from three developing countries. The next three examples are mostly about the benefits composting can provide to the soil and agriculture. These examples are also from three developing countries, but with a mixture of urban as well as rural settings. Last three chapters present more insight into the latest developments taking examples from Europe, as well as new methods adapted from the traditional styles from Africa.
Residues from agriculture and the food industry consist of many and varied wastes, in total accounting for over 250 million tonnes of waste per year in the UK alone. Biotechnological processing of these residues would allow these waste products to be used as a resource, with tremendous potential. An extensive range of valuable and usable products can be recovered from what was previously considered waste: including fuels, feeds and pharmaceutical products. In this way Biotechnology can offer many viable alternatives to the disposal of agricultural waste, producing several new products in the process. This book presents up-to-date information on a biotechnology approach for the utilisation of agro-industrial residues, presenting chapters with detailed information on materials and bioconversion technology to obtain products of economic importance: The production of industrial products using agro-industrial residues as substrates The biotechnological potential of agro-industrial residues for bioprocesses Enzymes degrading agro-industrial residues and their production Bioconversion of agro-industrial residues. Written by experts in Biotechnological processing of Agro-Industrial Residues, this book will provide useful information for academic researchers and industry scientists working in biotechnology, waste management, agriculture and the food industry.
