Abstract
Organic wastes such as Fecal Sludge (FS) and Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) are readily available in large quantities in the Ghanaian environment especially in urban cities and towns where human populations are constantly swelling like Accra, Ghana. These wastes are observed to be rich in good amounts of organic matter and nutrients which when treated and managed well can be reused in agricultural production by improving soil fertility for plant growth. This study seeks to present first extensive assessment of the physicochemical and Microbial characteristics of mixing dried Fecal Sludge (DFS) and municipal organic Compost and the formulation mix effect on lettuce production in greater Accra region. Analysis of the characteristics of Dry Fecal Sludge and Compost informed in three (3) different formulations of Mix accordance with estimated variation on percentage nitrogen of 1.5%, 2.0% and 2.5%. The ratios were 1:3.3, 1:1.1 and 1:0.4 (w/w) of Dry Fecal Sludge and Compost respectively. Analyses of the physicochemical parameters confirmed that, formulation Mix of Dry Fecal Sludge and Compost had significant effect (p<0.05) on physicochemical parameters studied. The different treatments mix were tested on the growth of lettuce. Data on plant height and girth showed that there was a significant (p < 0.05) variation between the treatments. Formulated mix 1 showed high growth yield of lettuce as compared to other treatments in terms of number of leaf, wet and dry weigh of lettuce.
Highlights
Sanitation, waste and water services are increasingly becoming very relevant in most developing countries as the world's population persistently increase
The study revealed that sun-drying of dewatered fecal sludge is an effective means of reducing the pathogens and other toxic compounds found in raw sewage sludge
The final Dry Fecal Sludge had a better nutrient balance (N, P, K Organic Matter (OM)) with reduce content of pathogens and metal concentrations the content of pathogens found after treatment were still higher compared to required legislation
Summary
Sanitation, waste and water services are increasingly becoming very relevant in most developing countries as the world's population persistently increase. Areas of major concern when it comes to population bloating are sanitation and waste management in the urban and peri-urban centers as well as food security of the people. Sandec [1] reported that in the fifteen (15) years, urban population is expected to double both in numbers and in size. This is a wakeup call to relevant stakeholders especially policy makers to come out with appropriate policies and measures aimed at curbing the foreseeable implications of bloating urban population on both food security and environmental management (sanitation). Indiscriminate disposal of sewage sludge and fecal sludge in the cities of world-nations is very problematic as thousands of tons of sludge’s are disposed-off untreated [2]
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