Open Access
Municipal solid waste management in a decentralized composting scenario: assessment of the process reproducibility and quality of the obtained composts
(MDPI, 2024) Álvarez-Alonso, Cristina; Pérez-Murcia, María Dolores; Sánchez-Méndez, Silvia; Martínez-Sabater, Encarnación; Irigoyen Iriarte, Ignacio; López, Marga; Nogués, Isabel; Paredes, Concepción; Orden, Luciano; García-Rández, Ana; Bustamante, María Ángeles; Agronomía, Biotecnología y Alimentación; Agronomia, Bioteknologia eta Elikadura; Institute for Multidisciplinary Research in Applied Biology - IMAB
Over the last several years, the models for organic waste management have changed to implement circular economy in the productive cycle. In this context, new scenarios have emerged, where the management of different organic waste streams by composting is conducted with decentralized models that manage organic wastes in a more local way. However, in these new models, the standardization of the process control and of the end-product characteristics is necessary to guarantee the quality and agronomic value of the compost obtained, avoiding potential risks for human health and the environment. Thus, the aim of this work was to study two different scenarios of community composting of the organic fraction of municipal solid waste separately collected in order to guarantee the effectiveness and reproducibility of the composting processes and the quality of the composts obtained. For this, the development of the process and the characteristics of the composts at agronomic, hygienic–sanitary and environmental levels were assessed in real conditions and during three cycles of the process. The results obtained show high similarity among the different composting cycles, indicating an important degree of reproducibility among the processes. In addition, the composts obtained showed a good sanitary quality, absence of phytotoxicity and low contents of potentially toxic elements, which guarantee their use in agriculture without posing any risk to human health and to the environment.
Open Access
Integrated biowaste management by composting at a university campus: process monitoring and quality assessment
(MDPI, 2025-03-07) Álvarez-Alonso, Cristina; Pérez-Murcia, María Dolores; Martínez-Sabater, Encarnación; Irigoyen Iriarte, Ignacio; Sánchez Arizmendiarrieta, Joseba; Plana, Ramón; López, Marga; Nogués, Isabel; Bustamante, María Ángeles; Agronomía, Biotecnología y Alimentación; Agronomia, Bioteknologia eta Elikadura; Institute for Multidisciplinary Research in Applied Biology - IMAB
The sustainable management of biowaste, mainly food and pruning waste, is currently a challenge due to the increase in its production. The CaMPuSTAJE program, which has been implemented on the campus of the Public University of Navarre (UPNA) since 2019, is an excellent example of how the institution is addressing its strategic interests in sustainable waste management. The principal aim of this program is to manage the biowastes generated by the campus canteens through a simple community composting facility, involving UPNA students and graduates. This program aims to promote experiential learning and applied research in sustainability and circular economy, managing their own waste in a circular and local way. Thus, four composting sets of the CaMPuSTAJE program were evaluated by monitoring the process and the main chemical properties of the composting samples. Also, final composts were fully characterized to ensure the process reproducibility and efficiency and the absence of any hazard in the end-products. The final composts showed a significant agronomic quality, had low content of potentially toxic elements, and were free from phytotoxicity, thus being able to be reintroduced as an organic amendment at the university campus itself.
Open Access
Effect of feeding regime on composting in bins
(Taylor & Francis, 2017) Storino, Francesco; Menéndez Villanueva, Sergio; Muro Erreguerena, Julio; Aparicio Tejo, Pedro María; Irigoyen Iriarte, Ignacio; Natura Ingurunearen Zientziak; Nekazaritza Ekoizpena; Ciencias del Medio Natural; Producción Agraria; IdAB. Instituto de Agrobiotecnología / Agrobioteknologiako Institutua
Composting in bins is one of the most practical home composting methods. There is currently a need for greater information to improve the management of the composting process and to create home composting programs, which ensure sustainable production of high quality compost. This study investigates how two aspects of the bin feeding regime—the feeding frequency and the amount of waste applied at each feed—influence the process's evolution and the quality of the compost. Compost bins were assayed after introducing the same amount of kitchen and garden waste according to three different frequencies: in a single batch, weekly, or every 3 weeks. A fourth treatment was applied to calculate the potential waste reduction achieved by the composting process, filling the bins to the brim on a weekly basis. Temperature, mass, and volume changes; the microbial diversity (by Biolog); and gas emissions (CO2, CH4, N2O, and NH3) were all determined during the process. At the end of the experiment, all of the composts were weighed and characterized. Results show that the main differences were very dependent on the quantity of waste provided. Large amounts of waste were added increasing the compost's temperature and maturity during the process, while slightly affecting the salinity and phytotoxicity of the final compost but without any clear effects on microbial diversity and gas emission. Therefore, from a technical point of view, the shared use of compost bins among several households (community composting) is preferable to individual us

Irigoyen Iriarte, Ignacio

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