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End of Project Report This project addressed how to manage spent mushroom compost (SMC), an issue of critical importance to the continued development of the Irish mushroom industry. The most important aim of the project was to devise a feasible strategy for the management of this material on an industry wide basis. There were two main components of the project, which were conducted in parallel. One analysed the structure of the mushroom industry and the logistics of handling, transporting and processing SMC. The other studied the agronomic properties of SMC in an effort to develop improved guidelines on the best use of SMC in crop production. Our analysis of the SMC management problem led us to conclude that a centralised approach should be taken when developing the solution strategy. The model solution that was formulated is based on the establishment of centrally located depots for SMC collection, temporary storage and possible processing. This approach facilitates a variety of environmentally acceptable SMC end uses ranging from land application to incineration. We examined a variety of possible end uses for SMC, including its use as an alternative fuel. In the immediate future, we believe the predominant end use for SMC will be as an organic manure for field crop production and as a soil conditioner in the landscaping industry. Uses of this type are in line with both Irish and EU legislation regarding waste management. Our analysis suggests that tillage and horticulture offer the best promise for realising the beneficial properties of SMC. We have tested SMC on field crops such as winter and spring wheat and potatoes and on glasshouse crops such as tomatoes. These experiments have shown that SMC increases soil organic matter and improves soil structure. SMC is a very effective source of K and P and also provides trace elements. It makes a contribution to N nutrition but most of the N does not become available to the crop in the first year. For best results therefore, supplementary N must be applied. Overall, our results indicate that SMC can be used with beneficial effects in field crop production. The mushroom industry should move forward with establishing centralised SMC handling facilities to enable the efficient collection, temporary storage, further processing and transportation of SMC to end users. An education and awareness campaign should be conducted amongst farmers, in areas removed from mushroom production, to introduce them to the benefits of SMC and ways to effectively utilise this material. Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine European Union Structural Funds (EAGGF)

End of Project Report The objective of the Teagasc Manure (and Other Organic Wastes) Management Guidelines for IAE are to provide an operational framework for the agronomically efficient and environmentally safe recycling of these organic by-products, maximising the benefits of nutrients they contain at minimum cost. The principles of the approach are equally applicable to the management of all manures and organic wastes applied to land. The approach includes programmes for controlling manure quantity and quality; operational procedures covering storage, transport and nutrient management; and a quality assurance programme. These Guidelines assign the importance of manure management on an equal footing with other production practices. Implementation of these Guidelines may entail higher costs c o m p a red with traditional practices. However, some of the benefits accruing from the improved management practices can partly or wholly offset the costs of implementation. European Union

A rainfall simulator was used to evaluate the effectiveness of vegetative filter strips for the removal of sediment and phosphorus from feedlot runoff. Simulated rainfall was applied to nine experimental field plots with a 5.5-m by 18.3-m bare source area (simulated feedlot) and either a 0, 4.6-m or 9.1-m filter located at the lower end of each plot. Fresh dairy manure was applied and compacted into the bare portions of the plots at rates of 7,500 kg/ha and 15,000 kg/ha. Water samples were collected from the base of each plot and analyzed for sediment and nutrient content. One set of plots was constructed so that flow through the filters was concentrated rather than shallow and uniform. The 9.1-m and 4.6-m vegetative filter strips with shallow uniform flow removed 91 percent and 81 percent of the incoming suspended solids, and 69 percent and 58 percent of the incoming phosphorus, respectively. Soluble phosphorus in the filter effluent was sometimes greater than the incoming soluble phosphorus load, presumably due to lower removal efficiencies for soluble phosphorus and the release of phosphorus previously trapped in the filters. Vegetative filters with concentrated flow were much less effective than the shallow uniform flow plots, removing 40 percent to 60 percent less sediment and 70 percent to 95 percent less phosphorus than plots characterized by shallow uniform flow. Observation of existing filter strips on cropland found that in-field filter strips were not likely to be as effective as the experimental field plots because of problems with flow concentration. Financed in part by U.S. Dept. of Interior, as authorized by the Water Resources Research Act of 1984. Project S-010. " April 1986. "

A laboratory study was conducted to determine nitrogen removal rates from a land-applied wastewater as a function of the length of time the wastewater remained in the root zone. A digital simulation model was used as an aid in describing soil water (and wastewater) movement through the root zone under wet conditions (i.e. root zone 50- 75% saturated). A procedure was developed to predict the rate and volume of drainage as a function of initial soil moisture content, amount of liquid applied, and time after liquid application. An exact relationship between nitrogen removals and wastewater residence time in the root zone could not be developed. However, removals of up to 95% of applied NH₄-N were demonstrated in an 18-cm deep root zone with residence times as short as 2 hours. The exact nature of these removals was not determined. Ph. D.