Recycling

Biography

Biography: Muscolo Adele

Abstract

pathogens, when improperly disposed of and / or left in landfills, can cause significant environmental damage with negative effects on soils and crops. The residues of the industrial processing of oranges and olives, of which the Mediterranean countries are the major producers, being still rich in organic matter and bio-compounds, represent an important source of nutritional components. This work aims to recover and enhance the aforementioned biomasses through three different methods: anaerobic digestion, aerobic digestion and use without any transformation (raw waste management) to transform these residues into fertilizers by identifying the most eco-sustainable methodology. The by-products, obtained from the different transformation processes, have been chemically analyzed and tested on soil, and on growth and quality of garlic (Allium sativum). The results showed that all the by-products positively influenced the characteristics of soil and the quality of garlic, even if the effects were different and dependent on the type of the by-product used and on the chemical characteristics of the biomass from which the by-products came. The by-products from orange waste (pastazzo) were somewhat more effective than those from olive pomace and among the types of by-products, compost was the most effective. All by-products improved both the productivity and the quality of the garlic.

Conclusion: The results of this study showed that all biomass transformation methods have led to the production of fertilizers that can be successfully used in agriculture. All the processing methods used resulted sustainable, who more from an environmental, who more from an agricultural or an economic point of view.