VERMICOMPOST., A BACKBONE FOR SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE – REVIEW ARTICLE
N. Uma Maheswari* and M. Priya
ABSTRACT
Vermicompost is produced through interaction between earthworm and microorganism by the breakdown of organic wastes. Vermiculture and vermin-composting are a self-promoted, self-regulated, self-improved and self-enhanced, low or no-energy requiring zero-waste technology, and easy to construct, operate and maintain. It excels all 'bio-conversion' technologies by the fact that it can utilize organics that otherwise cannot be utilized by others and also excels all 'bio-treatment' technologies because it achieves greater utilization than the rate of destruction achieved by other technologies. It involves about 100-1000 times higher 'value addition' than other biological technologies. The best part is that vermicomposting by worms decrease the proportion of 'anaerobic to aerobic decomposition', resulting in a significant decrease in the greenhouse gas methane (CH4) which plagues the conventional composting methods by microbes. All organic wastes by their very nature (chemical composition) are bound to disintegrate anaerobically in environment and generate greenhouse gas methane (CH4). Only if they are allowed to degrade completely under aerobic conditions (which is readily facilitated by earthworms) that this can be prevented. Vermicomposting is saving over 13,000 cum of landfill space every year in Australia. Some city councils in Australia were committed to 'no landfills' by 2008 and planned to achieve this target by vermi-composting the entire organic wastes of the residents. Thus the vermicomposting process helps in the disposal of organic waste and industrial waste in a safe, economic and useful manner.
Keywords: Vermicompost, Earthworms, Nutrients, Decomposition.
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