IFDCComposting initiatives in UgandaDavid Hirst
Julius Turyamwijuka
D
IFDC
IFDC
Uganda's soils Soils are getting increasingly depleted
IFDC
Soils cont..
IFDC
usage Use of fertilizer is very low standing at 2-8%
for inorganic fertilizer and 24.9% for organicfertilizer. IF 1 kg/ha and is below the Sub-Saharan Africa average of 9.6 kg/ha.
Regions
Fertiliser use
Organic Inorganic
Central region 34.2 11.7Kampala 23.0 5.5Central 1 41.5 14.7Central 2 27.6 9.2Eastern region 21.9 10.4East Central 15.4 5.2Eastern 25.9 13.6Northern region 9.6 4.4Mid-North 6.7 3.6North East 2.1 2.0West Nile 16.0 6.2western region 33.9 6.5Mid-West 15.9 5.9South-Western 49.0 7.1
IFDC
Ag/household waste Organic fertilizer is largely
‘home grown’ ISFM techniques such as
mulching, fallowing;submersion of crop residues,bunds (soil, grass and stone) tocontrol soil erosion.
Some use of animal manureand compost
With these practices plussupplementary CStechnologies such as UDPgood increases in yield
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initiatives
• Landfill in Kampala (3 sites)• Uganda solid waste
composting program,funded by World Bank andmanaged by NationalEnvironmental ManagementAuthority (NEMA).
• Biogas• Biochar – R&D
IFDC
SWM - Lira composting facilityAerobic windrow composting;leachate is applied to windrowas a source of compostinginoculum35 tonnes p/d SW generatedfrom 2/4 divisions.95% of waste received isbiodegradableC/N ratio is too low at 12.Two revenue sources; carboncredits. 2,500 USD receivedfrom 2011; sales 9MT per week,but, demand is low
IFDC
Case study..challenges Collection and sweeping
isn’t done efficiently(managed by divisions)
Waste segregation isdone on site manually.Some hazardous
Operational fundsrequired to cover repairs
15 USD p/t plus transport High application rates. 2-3
tons p/a for heavy feedercrops maize, potatoes.
A large percentage ofsolid waste still dumped
IFDCCase study 2 – Biochar research,5km from central Kampala
Raw Materials used to make Biochar organicfertilizer.
• Charcoal powder- helps in retaining water andnutrients in the soil, stabilizes soil PH. Terra preta.
• Inoculated animal / municipal waste from a bio-digester.- free from CH4 gases, and rich in Nitrogen.
• Vermiculite and Betonite. –Rich in K, Mg, Ca, P,and other micro nutrients.
• Ash- Rich in K.• Phosphates mixed with bamboo vinegar to convert
P to P2O5.
IFDCMunicipal waste/ banana peelsconverted into charcoal powder.
IFDC
Biochar trials
IFDC
Packaging bag
IFDC
Biochar cont Min factory set up of capacity 3 tones daily, Three outlets,
in Uganda. Demonstrations and field trials on different crops in
collaboration with other government research institutionslike UIRI, MUK, NFA, Agriculture etc.
We have also done several laboratory tests We are in process of securing product certification from
Ministry of Agriculture of Uganda and IMO. NFA sole supplier of forest inputs.
IFDC
General challenges In general awareness about benefits of composting
limited Lack of collection and sorting systems Lack of incentives for private sector Transportation costs Poor market research/lack of marketing More emphasis on safe disposal than compost quality Negative balances may not be offset by MSW (1-3%)
however potential from human excreta greater (17-60%)
IFDC
Opportunities Some skepticism about use of inorganic fertilizers Problems with inorganic fertilizer supply chain In Kampala 28,000 tons of waste is collected and
delivered to landfill sites every month most of which issimply burnt
Other urban areas high biodegradable content of SW Middle class consumer interested in quality More focus on higher value crops in peri urban use of
processed liquid fertilizer (by mixing and fermentingmolasses, animal droppings and plant tissues), fororchards, banana plantations, horticulture crops, homeflower gardens.
IFDC
Thank You