Report on green waste and sediment characterization. Deliverable Action B1

Two Italian sediments were dredged from the Navicelli Canal in Pisa (Italy), a navigable canal which connects Pisa to the sea at the Port of Livorno, and analysed, since the first sediment collected (NAVI A) showed some properties not suitable to be composted with green waste, as planned in the Agrised project. This sediment, in fact, even having a good nutrient content, no heavy metal contamination and contamination by hydrocarbon C>12, presented a low content in sand and a high in clay and salinity, characteristics not suitable for a composting process. The second sediment (NAVI B), instead, had an appropriate texture, due to a high amount of sand in the sediment (62.42%) and a reasonable salinity. Furthermore, the good nutrient content and hydraulic property (high water availability), no heavy metal contamination, low organic contamination and absence of toxicity makes the NAVI B suitable for the composting process. The Czech sediment (EPS) had physical and chemical characteristics similar to the NAVI B sediment. In fact, it had a sandy texture, good hydraulic property (high water availability) and nutrient content, no inorganic contamination, and no toxicity. The content in organic contaminants resulted also similar to the Italian sediments. In addition, Czech sediment has the advantage to present a very low salinity due to its origin coming from agricultural area, resulting very appropriate for a composting process to be carried out in Czechia . The green waste biomass used for the composting process in Czech Republic comes from local agriculture areas and it was composed by fresh cut grass(A), corn cob biomass (B), wood chips (C) and dry leaves (D). Instead, the Italian green waste was composed by herbaceous and woody components, and it was provided by Agrobios, an Agricultural Cooperative in Pistoia specialized in the recovery and enhancement of agricultural by-products.Both the green wastes had a good nutrient content, both in total and soluble forms, no contaminations and a great enzyme activity, thus confirming the suitability of these biomasses for the composting process. These matrices, in fact, had the task to improve the content in available organic matter and nutrients of the compost, other than to ameliorate its physical structure.