Availability of lead in agricultural soils amended with compost of biosolid with wood shavings and yard trimmings.

Lead-polluted agricultural soils are a serious problem for food safety, with organic amendment being a promising mitigation method from the environmental perspective. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to evaluate lead availability and the effectiveness of the application of compost of biosolid with wood shavings and yard trimmings in contaminated soils. The physicochemical (Pb distribution, organic matter, pH, electric conductivity, cation exchange capacity, nitrogen, phosphorus, carbon, carbonates, exchangeable cations, sodium) and biological parameters (the microbial activity obtained by fluorescein diacetate hydrolysis) in Pb-polluted and non-polluted agricultural soils were evaluated after the addition of biosolid with wood shavings and yard trimming compost. Topsoils (lead-polluted and control) were collected in the vicinity of a former battery-recycling plant, amended with compost (0%, 5%, and 10%), and incubated in controlled conditions for 118 days. The results showed that lead availability decreased significantly, and the nutritional quality of the soils increased in the soils amended with 10% of compost. Taken together, the results of the present study indicated that compost amendment could be an effective method for mitigating the negative effects of lead in agricultural soils.

Physico-chemical and toxicological assessment of liquid wastes from olive processing-related industries.

BACKGROUND: In the last few years, agricultural uses of waste waters from olive processing-related industries have been gaining interest mainly with a view to composting or bio-fertilizers. The present work examines physico-chemical, toxicological and geno-toxicological properties of three liquid wastes, namely olive mill wastewater (OMWW), olive wet husk and olive brine. The effect of OMWW spreading on soil microbial activity and biomass was also evaluated. RESULTS: Data from Artemia salina and Lactuca sativa toxicity tests indicated high levels of lethality, and inhibitory effects on seed germination and seedling growth of all olive wastes. The genotoxicity assays using Allium cepa tests showed contrasting results. At high concentrations, olive wastes caused inhibition or suppression of mitosis. However, they did not produce induced anaphase aberrations. Data on reversion of Salmonella thyphimurium strains using the Ames test indicated that the olive wastes did not present mutagenic activity. Results from the field experiment showed that OMWW at a 500 m(3) ha(-1) had the highest values of both soil microbial activity and biomass after 3 months of the amendment application. CONCLUSION: This work adds new data for environmental risk assessment of olive industrial wastes. Direct use of olive wastes for agricultural purposes should be limited owing to their possible chemotoxic, phytotoxic and antimicrobial effects.

Short-term effects of combined iprodione and vermicompost applications on soil microbial community structure.

The use of compost amendments to bioremediate potential organic pollutants in agricultural soils has recently become an increasingly important field of research. Although several fungicides have been extensively used to control a wide range of soil-borne fungal diseases, little is known about the impact of applying these pesticides on the structure and function of microbial communities in soils amended with vermicompost. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of a combined treatment of iprodione and vermicompost on soil microbiological parameters under laboratory conditions. The study was carried out on agricultural and grassland soils to identify the effect of iprodione application at field rate (FR) and 10-times FR (10 FR) with and without vermicompost (VCH) on iprodione breakdown, fluorescein diacetate activity (FDA), total fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) profiles, total protein content, and protein profiles by using sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). Our results indicate that the addition of vermicompost decreased the iprodione breakdown at days 30 and 60 in non-sterilised agricultural soil and at 60 days in sterilised and non-sterilised grassland soil. Independent of vermicompost amended treatments, iprodione was found to mainly alter microbial communities after 30 days of incubation. On day 30, separation between communities treated with iprodione 10 FR and iprodione 10FR + VCH treatments were well defined in both agricultural and grassland soils. Within each soil type, our results showed no difference in the total protein content. However, the protein content in the grassland soil was clearly higher than in the agricultural soil. SDS-PAGE gels revealed that the treatments applied to the agricultural soil using iprodione at the highest dosages (iprodione 10FR and iprodione 10FR+VCH) resulted in an alteration of the band pattern. In conclusion, the experiments revealed that the addition of vermicompost may decrease the breakdown of iprodione in soils. Furthermore, elevated dosages of iprodione may potentially affect the microbial community structure and diversity of the soil, which may lead to the deterioration of soil quality and fertility.