Dataset Information

Endotoxin emissions from commercial composting activities.

ABSTRACT: This paper describes an exploratory study of endotoxin emissions and dispersal from a commercial composting facility. Replicated samples of air were taken by filtration at different locations around the facility on 10 occasions. Measurements were made of endotoxin and associated culturable microorganisms. The inflammatory response of cell cultures exposed to extracts from the filters was measured. Endotoxin was detected in elevated concentrations close to composting activities. A secondary peak, of lesser magnitude than the peak at source was detected at 100-150 m downwind of the site boundary. Unexpectedly high concentrations of endotoxin were measured at the most distant downwind sampling point. Extracted endotoxin was found to stimulate human monocytes and a human lung epithelial cell line to produce significant amounts of pro-inflammatory cytokines. On a weight basis, endotoxin extracted from the composting source has a greater inflammatory cytokine inducing effect than commercial E. coli endotoxin.

SUBMITTER: Deacon L

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2796505 | biostudies-literature | 2009 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Endotoxin emissions from commercial composting activities.

Deacon Lewis L Pankhurst Louise L Liu Jian J Drew Gillian H GH Hayes Enda T ET Jackson Simon S Longhurst James J Longhurst Philip P Pollard Simon S Tyrrel Sean S

Environmental health : a global access science source 20091221

This paper describes an exploratory study of endotoxin emissions and dispersal from a commercial composting facility. Replicated samples of air were taken by filtration at different locations around the facility on 10 occasions. Measurements were made of endotoxin and associated culturable microorganisms. The inflammatory response of cell cultures exposed to extracts from the filters was measured. Endotoxin was detected in elevated concentrations close to composting activities. A secondary peak, ...[more]

PMID: 20102594

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Project description:With the rapid growth of livestock breeding, manure composting has evolved to be an important source of atmospheric methane (CH4) which accelerates global warming. Calcium superphosphate (CaSSP), as a commonly used fertilizer, was proposed to be effective in reducing CH4 emissions from manure composting, but the intrinsic biological mechanism remains unknown. Methanogens and methanotrophs both play a key role in mediating CH4 fluxes, therefore we hypothesized that the CaSSP-mediated reduction in CH4 emissions was attributed to the shift of methanogens and methanotrophs, which was regulated by physicochemical parameter changes. To test this hypothesis, a 60-day pig manure windrow composting experiment was conducted to investigate the response of CH4 emissions to CaSSP amendment, with a close linkage to methanogenic and methanotrophic communities. Results showed that CaSSP amendment significantly reduced CH4 emissions by 49.5% compared with the control over the whole composting period. The decreased mcrA gene (encodes the α-subunit of methyl-coenzyme M reductase) abundance in response to CaSSP amendment suggested that the CH4 emissions were reduced primarily due to the suppressed microbial CH4 production. Illumina MiSeq sequencing analysis showed that the overall distribution pattern of methanogenic and methanotrophic communities were significantly affected by CaSSP amendment. Particularly, the relative abundance of Methanosarcina that is known to be a dominant group for CH4 production, significantly decreased by up to 25.3% accompanied with CaSSP addition. Only Type I methanotrophs was detected in our study and Methylocaldum was the dominant methanotrophs in this composting system; in detail, CaSSP amendment increased the relative abundance of OTUs belong to Methylocaldum and Methylobacter. Moreover, the increased SO42- concentration and decreased pH acted as two key factors influencing the methanogenic and methanotrophic composition, with the former has a negative effect on methanogenesis growth and can later promote CH4 oxidation at a low level. This study deepens our understanding of the interaction between abiotic factors, function microbiota and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, as well as provides implication for practically reducing composting GHG emissions.

Project description:Two alternative methods for the production of compost from certain category 3 animal by-products (catering waste and processed foodstuffs of animal origin) were assessed. The first proposed a minimum temperature of 55°C for 72 h; the second 60°C for 48 h, each with a maximum particle size of 200 mm. The proposed composting processes were assessed by the BIOHAZ Panel for their efficacy to achieve a reduction of 5 log10 of Enterococcus faecalis or Salmonella Senftenberg (775W, H2S negative) and a 3 log10 reduction of the infectivity titre of thermoresistant viruses, such as parvovirus, in the composted material, as set out in Annex V, Chapter 3, Section 2 of Commission Regulation (EU) No 142/2011. The assessment of the BIOHAZ Panel exclusively focused on the ABP raw materials (catering waste and processed foodstuffs) intended for human consumption. The applicant did not provide any validation experiments with direct measurement of the reduction of viability of endogenous indicators or spiked surrogate bacteria. However, from thermal inactivation parameters reported in the literature, it can be concluded that the proposed composting standards can achieve at least a 5 log10 reduction of Enterococcus faecalis or Salmonella Senftenberg 775W. The applicant did not consider thermoresistant viruses as a relevant hazard and therefore did not provide any data from direct measurements of the reduction of infectivity of spiked thermoresistant viruses, nor provide data from validation studies undertaken at national level or data from literature supporting the efficacy of the proposed composting standards on thermoresistant viruses. However, thermoresistant viruses should be considered to be a relevant hazard in this context and validation data should have been provided accordingly. The BIOHAZ Panel considers that the evidence provided by the applicant does not demonstrate that the requirements of Annex V, Chapter 3, Section 2 of Commission Regulation (EU) No 142/2011 are achieved.

Dataset Information

Endotoxin emissions from commercial composting activities.

Publications

Endotoxin emissions from commercial composting activities.

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