Abstract
This study evaluated the effects of abattoir wastewater irrigation on plant growth and development. The soils used in this study were collected from Primo Smallgoods Abattoir (Port Wakefield, South Australia) at different sites such as currently irrigated (CI), currently not irrigated (CNI) and soil outside the irrigation area as control (CTRL). A completely randomised block design was employed for the plant growth experiment, where four crops (Pennisetum purpureum, Medicago sativa, Sinapis alba and Helianthus annuus) were grown separately on three different soils (CI, CNI and CTRL) in plastic pots. Two types of water (tap water and wastewater) and two loadings were applied throughout the planting period based on the field capacity (FC 100 and 150 %). The overall dry matter yield was compared between the soils and treatments. Under wastewater irrigation, among the four species grown in the CI soil, P. purpureum (171 g) and H. annuus (151 g) showed high biomass yields, followed by S. alba (115 g) and M. sativa (31 g). The plants grown under tap water showed about 70 % lower yields compared to the abattoir wastewater irrigation (AWW). Similar trends in the biomass yields were observed for CNI and CTRL soils under the two water treatments, with the biomass yields in the following order CI > CNI > CTRL soils. The results confirm the beneficial effects of AWW at the greenhouse level. However, a proper cropping pattern and wastewater irrigation management plan is essential to utilise the nutrients available in the wastewater-irrigated land treatment sites. The increase in fertility is evident from the effects of wastewater on biomass growth and also the abundance of nutrients accumulated in plants. A mass balance calculation on the applied, residual and the plant-accumulated nutrients over a few cropping periods will help us in understanding the nutrient cycling processes involved in the abattoir-irrigated land treatment sites, which will serve as an effective tool for the environmental management.
Highlights
Wastewater reuse is an important component of sustainable water resource management; water reuse from various wastewater sources after removing the pollutants, nutrients and pathogens provides an option for water security (Grant, 2011)
The increase in fertility is evident from the effects of wastewater on biomass growth and the abundance of nutrients accumulated in plants
A mass balance calculation on the applied, residual and the plant-accumulated nutrients over a few cropping periods will help us in understanding the nutrient cycling processes involved in the abattoir-irrigated land treatment sites, which will serve as an effective tool for the environmental management
Summary
Wastewater reuse is an important component of sustainable water resource management; water reuse from various wastewater sources after removing the pollutants, nutrients and pathogens provides an option for water security (Grant, 2011). Abattoir wastewater is a rich source of nutrients even after primary treatment, resulting in high cost for further treatment and disposal (Li and Huang, 1986). Animal manure contributes significant amounts of pollutants to the abattoir effluent containing N, P, and organic carbon (Meat Livestock Australia (MLA), 2012). The ever increasing number and volume of effluents discharged leads to a range of environmental issues in Australia such as water pollution, soil degradation and accumulation of toxic metals in plants and animals (Raghupathi et al, 2014). The production of meat results in the generation of wastewater with significant amount of pollutants, nutrients and pathogens. These agricultural industries are responsible for global warming and climate change (Dudgeon et al, 2006). Irrigation of wastewater is a potential low-cost approach of wastewater management and is a good source of nutrients
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