Ruminants are important sources of meat and milk. Their production is associated with manure excretion. Estimates of over 3,900,000 million metric tonnes of manure are produced daily from ruminants worldwide. Storage and spread of this waste on land pose health risks and environmental problems. Efficient and sustainable way of handling ruminant manure is required. Composting and vermicomposting are considered two of the best techniques for solid biomass waste management. This paper presents vermicomposting as an effective tool for ruminant manure management. Vermicomposting is a mesophilic biooxidation and stabilisation process of organic materials that involves the joint action of earthworm and microorganism. Compared with composting, vermicomposting has higher rate of stabilisation and it is greatly modifying its physical and biochemical properties, with low C？:？N ratio and homogenous end product. It is also costeffective and ecofriendly waste management. Due to its innate biological, biochemical and physicochemical properties, vermicomposting can be used to promote sustainable ruminant manure management. Vermicomposts are excellent sources of biofertiliser and their addition improves the physiochemical and biological properties of agricultural soils. In addition, earthworms from the vermicomposting can be used as source of protein to fishes and monogastric animals. Vermicompost can also be used as raw materials for bioindustries. 1. Introduction Nutrients losses from animal production in the form of manure are inevitable. Excessive animal waste results from an intensive ruminant production (management), high stocking density, or from feeding nutrients more than required by the animals [1]. The nutrients loss and waste products may exceed the carrying capacity of an area and become detrimental to the environment. Poor manure management contributes to pollution and eutrophication of surfaces water, ground water, and coastal marine ecosystem. It contributes to air pollution through emissions of odour, ammonia, methane and nitrous oxide, and it also contributes to soil pollution through the accumulation of heavy metals. These pollution and eutrophication effects subsequently lead to loss of human health, biodiversity, climate change, acidification, and ecosystem degradation [2]. Ruminant livestock has the highest contribution to these GHG emissions among livestock [3]. The sources of these GHG emissions and other pollutants from ruminants are respiration, enteric fermentation and manure. Nutrients losses due to ruminant production are either from enteric
References
[1]
S. Tamminga, “Nutrition management of dairy cows as a contribution to pollution control,” Journal of Dairy Science, vol. 75, no. 1, pp. 345–357, 1992.
[2]
H. Menzi, O. Oenema, C. Burton et al., “Impacts of intensive livestock production and manure management on the environment,” in Livestock in a Changing Landscape Drivers, Consequences and Responses, Henning Steinfeld, H. A. Mooney, F. Schneider, and L. E. Neville, Eds., vol. 1, pp. 139–163, Island Press, 2010.
[3]
G. Zervas and E. Tsiplakou, “An assessment of GHG emissions from small ruminants in comparison with GHG emissions from large ruminants and monogastric livestock,” Atmospheric Environment, vol. 49, pp. 13–23, 2012.
[4]
X. Hao, M. B. Benke, C. Li, F. J. Larney, K. A. Beauchemin, and T. A. McAllister, “Nitrogen transformations and greenhouse gas emissions during composting of manure from cattle fed diets containing corn dried distillers grains with solubles and condensed tannins,” Animal Feed Science and Technology, vol. 166-167, pp. 539–549, 2011.
[5]
J. M. Powell, M. A. Wattiaux, G. A. Broderick, V. R. Moreira, and M. D. Casler, “Dairy diet impacts on fecal chemical properties and nitrogen cycling in soils,” Soil Science Society of America Journal, vol. 70, no. 3, pp. 786–794, 2006.
[6]
J. M. Powell, G. A. Broderick, J. H. Grabber, and U. C. Hymes-Fecht, “Technical note: effects of forage protein-binding polyphenols on chemistry of dairy excreta,” Journal of Dairy Science, vol. 92, no. 4, pp. 1765–1769, 2009.
[7]
C. Lazcano, M. Gómez-Brandón, and J. Domínguez, “Comparison of the effectiveness of composting and vermicomposting for the biological stabilization of cattle manure,” Chemosphere, vol. 72, no. 7, pp. 1013–1019, 2008.
[8]
W. Sheldrick, J. K. Syers, and J. Lingard, “Contribution of livestock excreta to nutrient balances,” Nutrient Cycling in Agroecosystems, vol. 66, no. 2, pp. 119–131, 2003.
[9]
J. Dominguez and C. A. Edwards, “Relationships between composting and vermicomposting,” in Vermiculture Technology Earthworms, Organic Wastes, and Environmental Management, C. A. Edwards, N. Q. Arancon, and R. Sherman, Eds., pp. 11–26, Taylor & Francis, New York, NY, USA, 2011.
[10]
X. Hao, C. Chang, F. J. Larney, and G. R. Travis, “Greenhouse gas emissions during cattle feedlot manure composting,” Journal of Environmental Quality, vol. 30, no. 2, pp. 376–386, 2001.
[11]
“FAO statistical database,” Food and Agricultural Organisation, 2013, http://faostat3.fao.org/home/index.html#download.
[12]
S. G. Sommer and N. J. Hutchings, “Ammonia emission from field applied manure and its reduction—invited paper,” European Journal of Agronomy, vol. 15, no. 1, pp. 1–15, 2001.
[13]
T. D. Nennich, J. H. Harrison, L. M. VanWieringen et al., “Prediction of manure and nutrient excretion from dairy cattle,” Journal of Dairy Science, vol. 88, no. 10, pp. 3721–3733, 2005.
[14]
A. Standard, D384.2, Manure Production and Characteristics, ASABE, St. Joseph, Mich, USA, 2005.
[15]
C. A. Rotz, D. R. Buckmaster, and J. W. Comerford, “A beef herd model for simulating feed intake, animal performance, and manure excretion in farm systems,” Journal of Animal Science, vol. 83, no. 1, pp. 231–242, 2005.
[16]
V. A. Wilkerson, D. R. Mertens, and D. P. Casper, “Prediction of excretion of manure and nitrogen by Holstein dairy cattle,” Journal of Dairy Science, vol. 80, no. 12, pp. 3193–3204, 1997.
[17]
S. Fernández-Rivera, T. Williams, P. Hiernaux, and J. Powell, “Faecal excretion by ruminants and manure availability for crop production in semi-arid West Africa,” 1995.
[18]
P. A. Konandreas and F. M. Anderson, Cattle Herd Dynamics: An Integer and Stochastic Model for Evaluating Production Alternatives, ILRI (aka ILCA and ILRAD), 1982.
[19]
P. C. Hoffman, C. R. Simson, and M. Wattiaux, “Limit feeding of gravid holstein heifers: effect on growth, manure nutrient excretion, and subsequent early lactation performance,” Journal of Dairy Science, vol. 90, no. 2, pp. 946–954, 2007.
[20]
Z. C. Somda, J. M. Powell, S. Fernandez-Rivera, and J. Reed, “Feed factors affecting nutrient excretion by ruminants and the fate of nutrients when applied to soil,” in Livestock and Sustainable Nutrient Cycling in Mixed Farming Systems of Sub-Saharan Africa, J. M. Powell, S. Fernández-Rivera, T. O. Williams, and C. Renard, Eds., ILRI (aka ILCA and ILRAD), Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 1995.
[21]
M. Mathot, V. Decruyenaere, D. Stilmant, and R. Lambert, “Effect of cattle diet and manure storage conditions on carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide emissions from tie-stall barns and stored solid manure,” Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment, vol. 148, pp. 134–144, 2012.
[22]
S. O. Petersen, S. G. Sommer, F. Béline et al., “Recycling of livestock manure in a whole-farm perspective,” Livestock Science, vol. 112, no. 3, pp. 180–191, 2007.
[23]
E. Kebreab, J. France, J. A. Mills, R. Allison, and J. Dijkstra, “A dynamic model of N metabolism in the lactating dairy cow and an assessment of impact of N excretion on the environment,” Journal of Animal Science, vol. 80, no. 1, pp. 248–259, 2002.
[24]
D. Bravo, D. Sauvant, C. Bogaert, and F. Meschy, “III. Quantitative aspects of phosphorus excretion in ruminants,” Reproduction Nutrition Development, vol. 43, no. 3, pp. 285–300, 2003.
[25]
D. M. Vitti and E. Kebreab, Phosphorus and Calcium Utilization and Requirements in Farm Animals, CABI, New York, NY, USA, 2010.
[26]
E. J. Underwood and N. F. Suttle, The Mineral Nutrition of Livestock, CABI, New York, NY, USA, 1999.
[27]
O. Oenema, D. Oudendag, and G. L. Velthof, “Nutrient losses from manure management in the European Union,” Livestock Science, vol. 112, no. 3, pp. 261–272, 2007.
[28]
O. Oenema, A. Bannink, S. G. Sommer, J. W. van Groenigen, and G. L. Velthof, “Gaseous nitrogen emissions from livestock farming systems,” in Nitrogen in the Environment, J. L. Hatfield and R. F. Follett, Eds., chapter 12, pp. 395–441, Academic Press, San Diego, Calif, USA, 2nd edition, 2008.
[29]
J. Martinez, P. Dabert, S. Barrington, and C. Burton, “Livestock waste treatment systems for environmental quality, food safety, and sustainability,” Bioresource Technology, vol. 100, no. 22, pp. 5527–5536, 2009.
[30]
M. P. Bernal, J. A. Alburquerque, and R. Moral, “Composting of animal manures and chemical criteria for compost maturity assessment. A review,” Bioresource Technology, vol. 100, no. 22, pp. 5444–5453, 2009.
[31]
B. Amon, V. Kryvoruchko, T. Amon, and S. Zechmeister-Boltenstern, “Methane, nitrous oxide and ammonia emissions during storage and after application of dairy cattle slurry and influence of slurry treatment,” Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment, vol. 112, no. 2-3, pp. 153–162, 2006.
[32]
D. R. Külling, H. Menzi, T. F. Kr？ber et al., “Emissions of ammonia, nitrous oxide and methane from different types of dairy manure during storage as affected by dietary protein content,” Journal of Agricultural Science, vol. 137, no. 2, pp. 235–250, 2001.
[33]
M. Benito, A. Masaguer, A. Moliner, N. Arrigo, and R. M. Palma, “Chemical and microbiological parameters for the characterisation of the stability and maturity of pruning waste compost,” Biology and Fertility of Soils, vol. 37, no. 3, pp. 184–189, 2003.
[34]
S. Goyal, S. K. Dhull, and K. K. Kapoor, “Chemical and biological changes during composting of different organic wastes and assessment of compost maturity,” Bioresource Technology, vol. 96, no. 14, pp. 1584–1591, 2005.
[35]
N. A. El Kader, P. Robin, J. M. Paillat, and P. Leterme, “Turning, compacting and the addition of water as factors affecting gaseous emissions in farm manure composting,” Bioresource Technology, vol. 98, no. 14, pp. 2619–2628, 2007.
[36]
J. Peigné and P. Girardin, “Environmental impacts of farm-scale composting practices,” Water, Air, and Soil Pollution, vol. 153, no. 1–4, pp. 45–68, 2004.
[37]
B. Eghball, J. F. Power, J. E. Gilley, and J. W. Doran, “Nutrient, carbon, and mass loss during composting of beef cattle feedlot manure,” Journal of Environmental Quality, vol. 26, no. 1, pp. 189–193, 1997.
[38]
P. M. Ndegwa and S. A. Thompson, “Integrating composting and vermicomposting in the treatment and bioconversion of biosolids,” Bioresource Technology, vol. 76, no. 2, pp. 107–112, 2001.
[39]
J. Dominguez, “The microbiology of vermicomposting,” in Vermiculture Technology Earthworms, Organic Wastes, and Environmental Management, C. A. Edwards, N. Q. Arancon, and R. Sherman, Eds., 2011.
[40]
J. Dominguez, C. Edwards, and S. Subler, “Comparison of vermicomposting and composting,” BioCycle, vol. 38, no. 4, pp. 57–59, 1997.
[41]
R. M. Atiyeh, J. Domínguez, S. Subler, and C. A. Edwards, “Changes in biochemical properties of cow manure during processing by earthworms (Eisenia andrei, Bouché) and the effects on seedling growth,” Pedobiologia, vol. 44, no. 6, pp. 709–724, 2000.
[42]
V. K. Garg, Y. K. Yadav, A. Sheoran, S. Chand, and P. Kaushik, “Livestock excreta management through vermicomposting using an epigeic earthworm Eisenia foetida,” Environmentalist, vol. 26, no. 4, pp. 269–276, 2006.
[43]
J. Pathma and N. Sakthivel, “Microbial diversity of vermicompost bacteria that exhibit useful agricultural traits and waste management potential,” SpringerPlus, vol. 1, article 26, 2012.
[44]
E. Albanell, J. Plaixats, and T. Cabrero, “Chemical changes during vermicomposting (Eisenia fetida) of sheep manure mixed with cotton industrial wastes,” Biology and Fertility of Soils, vol. 6, no. 3, pp. 266–269, 1988.
[45]
R. P. Singh, A. Embrandiri, M. H. Ibrahim, and N. Esa, “Management of biomass residues generated from palm oil mill: vermicomposting a sustainable option,” Resources, Conservation and Recycling, vol. 55, no. 4, pp. 423–434, 2011.
[46]
M. Vinceslas-Akpa and M. Loquet, “Organic matter transformations in lignocellulosic waste products composted or vermicomposted (Eisenia fetida andrei): chemical analysis and 13C CPMAS NMR spectroscopy,” Soil Biology and Biochemistry, vol. 29, no. 3-4, pp. 751–758, 1997.
[47]
G. Chattopadhyay, “Use of vermicomposting biotechnology for recycling organic wastes in agriculture,” International Journal of Recycling of Organic Waste in Agriculture, vol. 1, no. 1, pp. 1–6, 2012.
