ABSTRACT
This chapter looks at the two main options for treating organic waste: composting and anaerobic digestion (AD) and options for implementing these in a poor rural community. In many developing rural communities waste is either left untreated in piles sometimes on dry land and sometimes in waterways, or treated through open burning. In rural areas, the high organic content of waste exacerbates the negative impacts of landfilling as it is their biodegradation that generates landfill gas. Unlike in urban areas, where municipal solid waste management is the single largest budgetary consideration of the local government, the low population density coupled with poor transport infrastructure in rural areas makes waste collection technically difficult and economically unfeasible. Organic wastes contain the nutrients required for plant growth, which are often depleted in soils where intensive monoculture farming is practised. AD, similar to composting, treats organic waste to produce a fertiliser.
