Chapter 15
Waste Management Practices and Their
Impact on Earthworms
Harsimran Kaur, Puttaganti Vijaya, and Suman Sharma
Abstract Earthworms in vermicomposting: Earthworms play an important role
in the fragmentation process and provide substrate so as to increase the surface area
for growing microorganisms. The vermicomposting process involves bio-oxidation
and stabilization of organic wastes through the interaction between earthworms and
microorganisms. Epigeic earthworms, that is, Eisenia fetida, are small in size, are
very active, and have regenerative capacity within the short period of time. They are
richly pigmented worms and are phytophagous. The role of earthworm in waste
management has been well documented, and this technology has been implemented
to process the waste to produce an efficient bio-product vermicompost. Earthworms
have an ability to decompose various toxic wastes, such as agricultural wastes, food
wastes, weed biomass, leaf litters, and municipal wastes. Parthenium hysterophorus
is one of the toxic weeds which is dangerous, allergic, poisonous, pernicious, and
aggressive, and it is known to pose a serious threat to livestock and human beings.
During the process of vermicomposting of Parthenium hysterophorus-rich substrate,
the worm’s fundamental health and physiology are known to be affected, as it causes
oxidative damage and alterations in its intestinal tissue. Therefore, appropriate
concentration of Parthenium hysterophorus is to be mixed with cow dung to convert
it into useful manure. This study illustrates the role of earthworm in converting
Parthenium hysterophorus-amended cow dung into a useful manure and the deleterious consequences of parthenium weed on the health of Eisenia fetida.
Keywords Vermicomposting · Organic waste · Eisenia fetida · Parthenium
hysterophorus · Oxidative damage
H. Kaur (*)
Department of Agriculture, Sri Guru Granth Sahib World University, Fatehgarh Sahib, Punjab,
India
P. Vijaya
Department of Zoology, Bangalore University, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
S. Sharma
Department of Zoology and Environmental Sciences, Punjabi University, Patiala, Punjab, India
© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive licence to
Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2020
S. A. Bhat et al. (eds.), Earthworm Assisted Remediation of Effluents and Wastes,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-4522-1_15
247
Waste Management Practices and Their
Impact on Earthworms
Harsimran Kaur, Puttaganti Vijaya, and Suman Sharma
Abstract Earthworms in vermicomposting: Earthworms play an important role
in the fragmentation process and provide substrate so as to increase the surface area
for growing microorganisms. The vermicomposting process involves bio-oxidation
and stabilization of organic wastes through the interaction between earthworms and
microorganisms. Epigeic earthworms, that is, Eisenia fetida, are small in size, are
very active, and have regenerative capacity within the short period of time. They are
richly pigmented worms and are phytophagous. The role of earthworm in waste
management has been well documented, and this technology has been implemented
to process the waste to produce an efficient bio-product vermicompost. Earthworms
have an ability to decompose various toxic wastes, such as agricultural wastes, food
wastes, weed biomass, leaf litters, and municipal wastes. Parthenium hysterophorus
is one of the toxic weeds which is dangerous, allergic, poisonous, pernicious, and
aggressive, and it is known to pose a serious threat to livestock and human beings.
During the process of vermicomposting of Parthenium hysterophorus-rich substrate,
the worm’s fundamental health and physiology are known to be affected, as it causes
oxidative damage and alterations in its intestinal tissue. Therefore, appropriate
concentration of Parthenium hysterophorus is to be mixed with cow dung to convert
it into useful manure. This study illustrates the role of earthworm in converting
Parthenium hysterophorus-amended cow dung into a useful manure and the deleterious consequences of parthenium weed on the health of Eisenia fetida.
Keywords Vermicomposting · Organic waste · Eisenia fetida · Parthenium
hysterophorus · Oxidative damage
H. Kaur (*)
Department of Agriculture, Sri Guru Granth Sahib World University, Fatehgarh Sahib, Punjab,
India
P. Vijaya
Department of Zoology, Bangalore University, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
S. Sharma
Department of Zoology and Environmental Sciences, Punjabi University, Patiala, Punjab, India
© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive licence to
Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2020
S. A. Bhat et al. (eds.), Earthworm Assisted Remediation of Effluents and Wastes,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-4522-1_15
247