ADDITION OF BOILER CHARCOAL WASTE TO COMPOST FOR USE AS SUBSTRATE FOR VEGETABLE SEEDLINGS

ABSTRACT The recovery of waste from the broiler production chain (BPC) is consistent with the principles of a circular economy. Besides turning waste into organic compost, its use as substrate for the production of vegetable seedlings further increases its economic value. However, it is necessary to adapt its characteristics to enable its use as substrate. To this end, the addition of boiler remnant charcoal wastes (BCW), another type of waste generated in the BPC, to the organic compost resulting from the composting of BPC waste with different bulking agents (BAs) was studied. The addition of BCW to agro-industrial compost reduced the electrical conductivity (EC) of substrates. Multiple linear regression showed that, of the 13 variables (physical, chemical and physicochemical) studied, three (EC, pH and N content) are sufficient to explain the seedling quality index (SQI). Simple nonlinear regression showed that, in order to achieve higher SQIs and easier removal of clod from tray, an additional 30% in weight of BCW is required for compost, using urban tree pruning, wood sawdust and sugarcane bagasse BAs. The use of cotton and Napier grass waste as BAs is not recommended for BPC waste mixtures, as they cause a large increase in substrate EC.