Worms Munch Kyrgyz Waste

by Valeri Abasov

All developed countries face acute problems in the removal of household and municipal waste, leaves and sewage. One way to address this problem is to reutilize these "wastes" after reprocessing them with the help of earthworms, a process called vermiculture. The worms break down the waste, producing "vermicompost" naturally, addressing the problem of waste without need for large capital investments or landfills.

A Kyrgyz NGO, Taza-Gul, has been promoting vermiculture as a method of dealing with Bishkek's solid waste problem. Every year in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan's capital city, 360 tons of garbage are carted away to centralized dumps, which occupy valuable suburban land. With the rapid growth in city population, the amount of drainage sediments is increasing each year. Included in this waste are heavy metals and other toxic substances. The soil is also polluted by bacteria and the eggs of parasitic worms.

In reprocessing one ton of municipal waste, 600-650 kilograms of biohumus (vermicompost) is generated. The substance produced is dark brown in color, odorless and granular in composition. Vermiculture reprocessing significantly decreases heavy metals in waste, much more than other methods of waste reprocessing, and also removes harmful bacteria and parasites.

Taza-Gul's vermiculture station currently processes the manure and bedding of 250 head of cattle. In addition to building and operating the station, Taza-Gul has organized government support to conduct eight training sessions for farmers. Kyrgyz President Akaev and members of the national press attended one of these sessions, bringing greater attention to the idea of vermiculture. The group sells the compost produced by the station for use at dachas and private plots of land. These sales generate enough income to maintain the station and support Taza-Gul's work.

Vermicompost provides an ecologically clean organic fertilizer to be used in city parks and on land set aside for agricultural crops-a benefit to both the environment and human health.

Valeri Abasov is the head of Taza Gul. Translated by Amy McVey. Taza-Gul, Moldybaeva Street, Apartment 21, Bishkek 720000, Kyrgyzstan; phone: (3312) 44-62-16.