Background: Newfoundland and Labrador (NL) has one of the highest waste disposal rates in Canada and it has\n200 small communities without access to central composting facilities. During Municipal solid waste (MSW)\ncomposting, the selection of bulking agents is critical. Bench-scale composting systems plus locally available bulking\nagents are thus desired for economic and effective MSW management in NL communities. This study evaluated the\nperformance of locally available bulking agents (i.e., NL sawdust and peat) during MSW composting in a bench-scale\nsystem. Physiochemical (temperature, oxygen uptake rate, pH, electrical conductivity, moisture and ash content,\nand C/N ratio) and biological (enzyme activities and germination index) parameters were monitored to evaluate\ncompost maturity and stability.\nResults: In peat composting, higher temperature for a longer duration was observed, indicating more effective\npathogen removal and sterilization. High enzyme activities of dehydrogenase, ?-glucosidase, and phosphodiesterase\nin the third week of composting imply high microbial activity and high decomposition rate. The low C/N ratio for\ncompost product implies acceptable stability states. In sawdust composting, higher temperature and oxygen uptake\nrate (OUR) were observed in the third week of composting, and higher enzyme activities in the second week. Sawdust\ncomposting generated a higher germination index, indicating higher maturity.\nConclusions: Both sawdust and peat are effective bulking agents for the bench-scale composting. The choice of a\nbulking agent for a particular community depends on the availability of the agent and land in the region, convenience\nof transportation, price, and the expected quality of the compost product.
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