Browsing by Author "Weerakkody, W.J.S.K."

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    Residual Effect of Municipal Solid Waste and Dewatered Fecal Sludge Co-compost Supplemented with Biochar on Growth and Yield of Ipomoea aquatica
    (Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2020) Kumara, A.W.S.P.; Weerakkody, W.J.S.K.; Ranaweera, B.; Thiel, F.; Karunarathne, K.H.M.I.
    Due to the intensification of agricultural lands, soil fertility has declined to result in decreased land productivity. Hence, farmers excessively use expensive chemical fertilizers that have reported deleterious effects on the environment and human health. Co-compost of municipal solid wastes and dewatered fecal sludge has a high potential as an agricultural resource in Sri Lanka. Biochar, a soil amendment that has been proven to have many positive effects in improving long-term soil quality and increasing crop yield especially with soil conditioner and organic fertilizer. This study was focused on the residual fertilizer effect of municipal solid wastes co-compost with dewatered fecal sludge supplemented with biochar in sandy loam soil using Ipomoea aquatic. The field experiment was carried out at the Centre of Excellence for Organic Agriculture, Makandura. To assess the residual fertilizer effect, Ipomea aquatica was cultivated as a follow-up crop in a previously maize cultivated field fertilized with pelletized forms of different co-composts combinations with biochar and mineral fertilizer. Department of agriculture recommended chemical fertilizer was used as a control treatment. Randomized completely block design with four blocks and eight treatments was used. Plant survival rate, leaf area index, and plant height were measured as plant growth and yield data and were recorded 3 times until 15 weeks. Significantly (p = 0.05) higher residual fertilizer effect on yield could be obtained with biochar mixed municipal solid waste-dewatered fecal sludge co-compost pellets treatments (0.86 kg m-2 ) compared to the mineral fertilizer treatments recommended by the department of agriculture (1.45 kg m-2 ). It can be concluded that municipal solid wastes with dewatered fecal sludge supplemented with biochar can provide a significant amount of residual nutrients in long term and the residual benefits depend on the initial nutrient composition of applied manure. Keywords: Biochar, Co-compost, Ipomoea aquatica, Municipal solid waste, Residual effect
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    Willingness to Pay for “Fortified Compost”: A Study on Vegetable Farming in Nuwara-Eliya District
    (Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2019-02) Waidyarathne, R.G.I.C.; Edirisinge, J.C.; Otoo, M.; Weerakkody, W.J.S.K.
    Urban waste mismanagement, soil fertility reduction in agricultural lands and the increasing world price of chemical fertilizer are the main problems that should be addressed immediately in the Sri Lankan context. A fortified compost consists of a mixture of municipal solid waste and faecal sludge which may help to reduce these problems to some extent. As this is a new product, distinguishing proof of purchaser inclinations is vital in outlining product with the most extreme buyer request to capture the market share. Thus, this investigation assessed buyers' expressed inclinations for fortified compost attributes through conjoint analysis. Ranked information was investigated utilizing Rank Ordered Logistic Regression (ROLOGIT) model. Also, ordinal psychometric measurement of attributes in fortified compost product was done through a five-point Likert scale. This survey focuses on vegetable farmers because the market for compost products is easy to implement in such a cluster. Through the multiple stage sampling method Nuwara-Eliya district was selected as it represents the highest number of vegetable farmers in the country. Face to face interviews was conducted among 300 randomly selected respondents representing all 5 DS divisions in the district. The results of ROLOGIT revealed that all four attributes (form of compost, distribution method, availability of faecal sludge and price per kg) have demonstrated a significant effect on choosing a compost product. For the form of compost; respondents were willing to pay an additional sum of LKR 4.18 if the product is in ‘dust’ form rather than in ‘pellet’ form. Also, 1.49 of marginal willingness to pay (MWTP) acquired for on-farm gate distribution strategy. Contrary to the expectation, farmers show a very high MWTP for the attribute ‘presence of faecal sludge’ with an additional amount of LKR 5.06. According to the Likert scale analysis close to 60.67 % of the respondents are willing to purchase the product in the next season. Hence, results of this study can be used to define a strategy regarding urban waste management with the combination of compost production.