14 DAY TRIAL // By now, it is quite clear that manure can successfully be used to power various winter sports, and that waste coming from zoo animals is an environmentally-friendly and easy-to-come-by energy source.
However, the US Department of Agriculture now wishes to draw attention to the fact that, according to their latest research into the potential green-oriented uses of cattle dung, it is very well possible to use this natural resource to “cure” contaminated lands.
More precisely, the specialists who investigated this issue claim that manure can successfully be used to clean up the natural ecosystems which have been damaged by the mining industry.
Thus, cattle dung can supposedly help remove various harmful chemical compounds from contaminated soils, making it possible for vegetation to once again grow in these regions.
Throughout the course of two years, these researchers “treated” several former mining sites with various amounts of beef manure (20-120 tons), and analyzed soil samples at regular time intervals.
They now claim that the manure compost they added to these soils increased microbial biomass, enzyme activity and nitrification potential. As well as this, the lead and zinc concentrations in these soils were lowered by as much as 90%.
For the time being, considerable portions of land in the US (especially southwestern Missouri, southeastern Kansas and northeastern Oklahoma) are unable to support the growth of vegetation as a result of their having once been mined for lead and zinc.
Apparently, the US Department of Agriculture is very optimistic about the possibility of using manure compost to restore these landscapes to their former glory.
“The results strongly suggest that available soil carbon—which we were able to provide with the compost—may be a critical variable in establishing and maintaining a healthy microbial population in soils contaminated by similar mine wastes,” soil scientist Paul White commented with respect to these findings.