Composting and Anaerobic Digestion as Biotechnological …
791
leading to the diversion of organic solid waste from landfills, sensitizing employees
and students, and also reducing costs with fertilizers and other inputs through the
use of these sustainable techniques (Kwasny et al. 2016; Gunther and Besen 2010).
Research and experiments carried out in educational institutions are important for
municipal authorities since they bring with them the possibility of their use as a tool
and pedagogical instrument to develop actions that foster sustainability regarding
the management of organic solid waste. The use of these instruments could leverage
a more agile and innovative change process, in addition to being closer to daily life
with greater potential for good results. The participants sensitized by these initiatives
may afterwards become disseminators of this knowledge in other places.
This study is an experience report of developed actions between the years 2012
and 2017, focusing on adding value to organic solid waste, especially used coffee
grounds in different departments at Ifes. This approach is an important experience
within the proposition of actions aiming at greater effectiveness in the treatment of
organic waste directly in its place of generation. The strategy reported here may
be replicated in other corporations that aim at sustainability in the management of
their processes, and it can contribute to the adoption and dissemination of good
environmental practices in higher education institutions. It is also hoped to support
the Zero Waste strategy and the concept of the Circular Economy that has recently
been gaining prominence in the scientific environment, highlighted as a possible
solution in adding value to solid waste.
2 Sustainable Techniques of Composting and Anaerobic
Digestion
Composting is a technique defined by Neto (1987) as a controlled aerobic process,
developed by microorganisms and carried out in two distinct steps: thermophilic
biochemical reactions and humification. This system has the advantages of reducing
the waste destined for landfills and the use of the organic matter obtained in different
crops. The final organic compound obtained presents properties that improve the
crop yield by providing nutrients to the plants and promoting the physical, chemical,
and biological improvement of the soil. In addition, in this development stakeholders
may use materials available at their own work/study sites.
For Kiehl (2004), composting is a controlled process of microbial decomposition,
oxidation and oxygenation of a heterogeneous mass of organic matter in the solid and
moist state. It comprises an initial mesophilic phase, characterized by microorganisms that have an intense metabolic activity due to the great contribution of organic
matter, presenting a high synthesis of DNA and enzymes. Afterwards, a biostabilization phase occurs, finally reaching the third stage, where humification or maturation
occurs, accompanied by the mineralization of certain components of organic matter,
such as nitrogen, phosphorus, calcium, and magnesium, which pass from organic to
inorganic, becoming available to plants.
791
leading to the diversion of organic solid waste from landfills, sensitizing employees
and students, and also reducing costs with fertilizers and other inputs through the
use of these sustainable techniques (Kwasny et al. 2016; Gunther and Besen 2010).
Research and experiments carried out in educational institutions are important for
municipal authorities since they bring with them the possibility of their use as a tool
and pedagogical instrument to develop actions that foster sustainability regarding
the management of organic solid waste. The use of these instruments could leverage
a more agile and innovative change process, in addition to being closer to daily life
with greater potential for good results. The participants sensitized by these initiatives
may afterwards become disseminators of this knowledge in other places.
This study is an experience report of developed actions between the years 2012
and 2017, focusing on adding value to organic solid waste, especially used coffee
grounds in different departments at Ifes. This approach is an important experience
within the proposition of actions aiming at greater effectiveness in the treatment of
organic waste directly in its place of generation. The strategy reported here may
be replicated in other corporations that aim at sustainability in the management of
their processes, and it can contribute to the adoption and dissemination of good
environmental practices in higher education institutions. It is also hoped to support
the Zero Waste strategy and the concept of the Circular Economy that has recently
been gaining prominence in the scientific environment, highlighted as a possible
solution in adding value to solid waste.
2 Sustainable Techniques of Composting and Anaerobic
Digestion
Composting is a technique defined by Neto (1987) as a controlled aerobic process,
developed by microorganisms and carried out in two distinct steps: thermophilic
biochemical reactions and humification. This system has the advantages of reducing
the waste destined for landfills and the use of the organic matter obtained in different
crops. The final organic compound obtained presents properties that improve the
crop yield by providing nutrients to the plants and promoting the physical, chemical,
and biological improvement of the soil. In addition, in this development stakeholders
may use materials available at their own work/study sites.
For Kiehl (2004), composting is a controlled process of microbial decomposition,
oxidation and oxygenation of a heterogeneous mass of organic matter in the solid and
moist state. It comprises an initial mesophilic phase, characterized by microorganisms that have an intense metabolic activity due to the great contribution of organic
matter, presenting a high synthesis of DNA and enzymes. Afterwards, a biostabilization phase occurs, finally reaching the third stage, where humification or maturation
occurs, accompanied by the mineralization of certain components of organic matter,
such as nitrogen, phosphorus, calcium, and magnesium, which pass from organic to
inorganic, becoming available to plants.