Agro-environmental assessment of composting plants in Southwestern of Morocco (Souss-Massa Region)

Abstract

Purpose The region of Souss-Massa generates huge quantities of organic horticultural wastes estimated up to 1,307,465 tonsÁyear -1 . Fruit and vegetable producers are asked to process the organic wastes because of the GlobalGAP certification requirements. As a result, there is a need to assess the existing composting plants at regional scale, to improve their efficiency, produce a high-quality soil amendment, free from any pathogens, and weed seeds. Methods The survey consisted of a diagnosis of the quantitative and qualitative status of the organic horticultural wastes (axillary buds; pruned leaves), and an agroenvironmental assessment of nine composting units. Results The analysis of macronutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium) in the organic wastes reveals that 13 million euro worth of N, P, and K can be generated by composting all horticultural wastes (12,000 tons of nitrogen, 6000 tons of phosphorus and 14,000 tons of potassium Á year -1 ), constituting for soils an important source of fertilization backup. Results of field investigations showed that 55% of the composting plants have an area equal to one hectare. The proximity between mature piles and raw materials in 55.5% of cases could highly contaminate them by root knot nematode inoculum. Only 11% of composting units were operating on impermeable surface. The test of circular chromatography showed that 80% of sampled composts are immature, even with high operational costs. Conclusion Much effort is required to control and optimize the maturation process. The composting activity should be organized through a professional skilled organization, supported by scientific research and government subsidies.

Evaluation of physicochemical, microbiological, and energetic characteristics of four agricultural wastes for use in the production of green energy in Moroccan farms

“…Currently, thanks to technological progress and scientific development, there are different technologies for processing manure production. Azim et al [23] have tried to treat this agricultural waste by composting. Makan (2015) have used animal manure to compost of trimmings and offcuts from casings and fat/mucosa, from cleaning and scraping the internal surfaces of the intestines which produced by agro-industrial company [24].…”

Drivers of Residents’ Home Composting Intention: Integrating the Theory of Planned Behavior, the Norm Activation Model, and the Moderating Role of Composting Knowledge

“…The use of compost can improve soil quality contributing to the increase of agricultural productivity. The compost quality and its effects depend on various compost parameters, such as carbon-nitrogen ratio, microbial activity, germination index, cation exchange capacity (CEC), humic substances content, compost concentration of water soluble carbon (WSC), dissolved organic matter, ratios of NH 4 + -N and NO 3 − -N, WSC/TN, and WSC/organic-N [15,16]. Compost quality and stability depend on the organic wastes used for the compost production and therefore compost quality evaluation should be made for each case in order to determine the cost-benefit ration, suitable uses, etc.…”

Hygienization assessment during heap co-composting of Turkey manure and olive mill pomace

“…They can be recycled as organic amendments after biological treatments (Tortosa et al, 2019). Nowadays, the rapid increase of biowaste production has become one of the most crucial issues in most countries around the world (Azim et al, 2017). Besides, intensive agricultural activities lead to soil fertility depletion, worsens soil erosion, and causes organic matter content reduction (Ramli et al, 2020).…”

“…Hence, the biowaste reuse as compost on agricultural soils can play a vital role in increasing the sustainability of agricultural practices, especially in Mediterranean countries where soil organic matter (SOM) is generally low as mentioned by Assess et al (2019). Indeed, soils of semi-arid rainfed areas, such as those of the West-Asia and North-Africa regions have less than 1.5% SOM content (Azim et al, 2017;Aboutayeb et al, 2020). Depending on the composting process monitoring and the raw material origin, composts may also contain pathogenic microorganisms (Bustamante et al, 2008).…”