Evaluation of environmental performance of the Starclean composting machine in converting the wet wastes into compost

Ideal management of urban, agricultural, and industrial organic wastes is important due to high daily production of them, particularly from environmental and hygienic perspective. The aim of this research was to evaluate the environmental performance of StarClean composting machine in converting wet wastes at origin to compost fertilizer and chemical and microbial analysis of the produced fertilizer and comparing it with reference national standards.Material and One composting machine with a capacity to convert 5-10 kg wet wastes was installed in region 22 of Tehran municipality, then Alicyclobacillus sendaiensis bacteria were added to the machine tank and wet wastes were strewed in it daily and after 24 hours, the produced compost was picked up. Afterwards, microbial and chemical characteristics of the compost were analyzed. Results showed that heavy metals concentration and Salmonella and Coliform fecal bacteria counts of the machine output compost were lower than permissible limits and completely passed the reference standards. Other chemical properties also were ideal which indicates the produced compost is a high quality organic fertilizer and its use can improve soil fertility.Discussion and the studied composting machine converts wet wastes to compost fertilizer with high quality in a short time without the production of leachate and an unpleasant odor. It also allows to complete separation of wet and dry wastes at source and production of compost fertilizer with high quality. Hence it is suggested to use this composting machine in places of wet waste generation.