Organic Waste Recycling Line

Organic waste is produced wherever there is human habitation. The main forms of organic waste are household food waste, agricultural waste, human and animal waste. In industrialised countries the amount of organic waste produced is increasing dramatically each year. Although many gardening enthusiasts ‘compost’ some of their kitchen and garden waste, much of the household waste goes into landfill sites and is often the most hazardous waste. The organic waste component of landfill is broken down by micro-organisms to form a liquid ‘leachate’ which contains bacteria, rotting matter and maybe chemical contaminants from the landfill. This leachate can present a serious hazard if it reaches a watercourse or enters the water table. Digesting organic matter in landfills also generates methane, which is a harmful greenhouse gas, in large quantity.

Human organic waste is usually pumped to a treatment plant where it is treated, and then the effluent enters a watercourse, or it is deposited directly into the sea. Little effort is made to reclaim the valuable nutrient or energy content of this waste.