Abstract
The amount of biowaste generated by university canteens (BWUC) in the faculties of the University of A Coruña (UDC) varies between 6 and 100 kg/day. In addition, the gardening services of the campus generate even higher amounts of garden waste (GrW), including pruning, which, once crushed, serves as bulking material for composting the biowaste from the canteens. Decentralized composting has been chosen with the aim of producing high quality organic fertilizers for university urban gardens while reducing the environmental burdens of both waste management and agricultural practice. Small static home composters of 340 L (SHC) for smaller amounts of generation (up to 20 kg BWUC/day) were used, while, for faculties of higher generation (up to 40 kg BWUC/day on average), the first composting stage was carried out in a closed and dynamic composter (DC). The dynamic composter was designed and built specifically for this project and its features were improved and optimized throughout the study. The pilot project was carried out in two centers of the UDC, which are known as the Philology Faculty (PF) and the School of Architecture (SA). All the organic waste generated by the canteens of these two colleges from January 2011 to July 2011 (approximately 3000 kg) was treated. Composting in SHC included a thermophilic phase that extended one month beyond the loading period for which thermophilic temperatures were also recorded. The use of the DC as the first stage in combination with static composters (SC) for the maturation stage reduced the overall thermophilic phase to 6–8 weeks. The complete maturation (Rottegrade class IV-V) was achieved after about four months in SHC and after two months when using the combined DC-SC system, if the right conditions of moisture were maintained. The chemical quality of the compost produced was compatible with Class A of Spanish legislation (equivalent to organic farmer quality) and the C/N ratio ranged from 9 to 15 depending on the relation BWUC:GrW.
Highlights
The production of quality compost from waste and other organic materials treated locally, at the source, has become an important objective for the sustainable and efficient management of urban solid waste and the conservation of soils
The general objective of this study focused on developing a decentralized composting system for organic waste from university canteen residues placed near each facility
This data indicates that the generation of organic waste by the university canteens (BWUC) can vary between 6 and 50 kg/day on average for each one of the centers, even though peaks of 100 kg of Biowaste from university canteens (BWUC) could be produced in a single center a day
Summary
The production of quality compost from waste and other organic materials treated locally, at the source, has become an important objective for the sustainable and efficient management of urban solid waste and the conservation of soils. Local composting promotes better environmental conditions in the area, the creation of local jobs related to circular economy, and citizen awareness about waste reduction and recycling [1,2,3,4,5,6]. Organic waste becomes a local resource to produce compost and promote urban agriculture [7]. Incorporating organic matter into the soil favors fertility, stores carbon, limits erosion, favors a better water retention, and facilitates agricultural tasks [8,9,10]. Public Health 2020, 17, 3153; doi:10.3390/ijerph17093153 www.mdpi.com/journal/ijerph
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