Composting in Serbia: Possibilities and limitations

Abstract

The concept of sustainable development of the planet Earth, which includes environmental, economic, social and institutional harmony of normal life of the people in it, is applicable to both the global and the regional and local level. This concept was promoted by the United Nations (UN) at the end of the last century, and one of the solutions has been offered in this direction: Vision 2050: The new agenda for business, published by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD). In accordance with the above document, Serbia in 2008 adopted a National Strategy for Sustainable Development, in which it set out its vision and anticipated a number of measures for its realization. Within the projection of sustainable development, composting can take an important place as a process of natural decomposition of organic waste, by which, its quantity is reduced and harmful impact on the environment can be removed on the one hand, while on the other hand a cost-effective material used for soil conditioning or as fertilizer can be obtained. Surveys carried out in Serbia show that there are respectable agricultural and forest resources which generate substantial amounts of organic waste. In this paper, in the specific examples of regions of Belgrade, Novi Sad and Niš, the possible range of biodegradable waste suitable for composting is established, which is now in Serbia at the beginning of the application. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. 47007]

Keywords

• sustainable development
• composting
• Serbia
• social responsibility
• education