Supply Chain Management for Upgrading Waste Materials to Value-Added Products
Citation:
Martín-Hernández, E., M. Martin, AND G. Ruiz-Mercado. Supply Chain Management for Upgrading Waste Materials to Value-Added Products. Organic Waste Management Workshop, Madison, WI, May 07 - 10, 2019.
Impact/Purpose:
Holistic management strategies of organic waste will be required to achieve a more comprehensive and permanent solution for nutrient pollution, energy security, and reduce the human impact on the environment. This workshop presentation describes the management of organic waste by a logistic supply chain approach for upgrading waste material to value-added products and the recovery of nutrients and studying the effect of decisions made in the organic waste supply chain on reducing the potential for harmful algal blooms. In the long-term, this tool improves the management of organic waste which has broad-scale implications for the environment in the US, with interest for Regions, states, communities, and the public looking for feasible solutions to address quality of life challenges, ecological impairments, and economic impacts caused by inefficient management of organic waste, nutrient pollution, and HABs.
Description:
Currently, in concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs), the manure is collected and stored as a liquid or slurry in waste storage ponds specifically designed for this purpose, or in tanks. After storage, a common practice is the land application of the waste with the aim to employ the manure nutrient content as fertilizer. However, the continued land application of manure in the surroundings of CAFOs can lead to nutrient pollution, causing various effects on human health, the environment, and the economy as mentioned before. Additionally, one of the major nutrient management difficulties is the high-water content of manure, making transportation of waste to nutrient deficient locations difficult and expensive. Therefore, appropriate and cost-effective on-site livestock manure management strategies combine with supply chains and distribution systems must be implemented to achieve an environmentally sustainable operation of livestock facilities. This work describes the development of a supply chain design and assessment framework based on techno-economic models to aid decision-makers in selecting the optimal nutrient recovery and valorization technologies from livestock waste.