LIFE RecOrgFert PLUS

The project addresses three distinct environmental problems which require attention both at global and local scale: land degradation, increasing amounts of waste from orange processing, and large amounts of waste sulphur. Estimates indicate that 38% of land cultivated worldwide has been damaged by conventional agricultural practices, involving soil compaction, loss of organic matter and erosion. Every minute, the world loses 3 ha of arable land due to salinisation and alkalisation and approximately 25 million ha of irrigated land has decreased productivity due to inappropriate soil management. In parallel, according to the European Environment Agency, 8% of the European territory - about 14 million ha - already shows some degrees of desertification, a situation particularly serious in southern EU areas. Citrus is cultivated in southern Europe, and quantities produced have increased steadily in the last decades. This growth has involved also the processing industry, with some serious negative environmental impacts, considering that only around half of the fresh orange weight is eventually transformed into juice, generating great amounts of residue, which is sent to landfill in large part. The third problem is due to the large amounts of elemental sulphur recovered from gas and oil desulphurisation, which - although in part reused in industrial applications - in large part remains unutilised and goes to landfill, so representing a potential environmental threat.

The overall objective of the LIFE RecOrgFert PLUS project is to turn orange (citrus) waste and recovered sulphur into a high-quality innovative organic mineral fertiliser, which can be used in alkaline and degraded lands to improve soil fertility and productivity. 
In particular, the project will:

• Design and set up an innovative pilot process for the processing of pellets of sulphur-bentonite with orange waste for the production of an organic-mineral fertiliser, processing up to 3 ton/h;

• Demonstrate the effectiveness of the new organic-mineral fertiliser in terms of germination and plant growth for a complete 2-year seasonal vegetation cycle of different crops (pepper, tomato, onion, broccoli and durum wheats) with extended open field tests on 27 ha in southern and central Italy (Calabria and Abruzzo) and Central Macedonia (Greece);

• Verify, through a “Life Cycle Approach”, the low environmental impact of the new organic-mineral fertiliser and its usability in organic agriculture;

• Demonstrate the economic viability of the process through the development of a Business Plan, aimed at enhancing the direct commercialisation of the fertiliser and at the replication and transfer of the pilot plant to other regions and crops. 

The project will contribute to the implementation of the following EU policies: Waste Framework Directive (2008/98/EC); EU Circular Economy Action Plan (COM/2020/98 final); EU Thematic Strategy for Soil Protection; EU roadmap and Action Plan “Towards a Zero Pollution Ambition for air, water and soil”; and the European Green Deal. In addition, the new fertilise is expected to comply with the EU Fertilising Products Regulation (EC) 2019/1009 (which will enter into force on 16 July 2022).

At the end of the project, the pilot plant will have a maximum production capacity of 4 800 ton/year and produce 3 000 tons of organic-mineral fertiliser (80% sulphur and 10% dried orange waste). This will allow reaching the following environmental and economic benefits:

• Quantity of recovered sulphur: 2 400 tons;

• Waste reduction: 1 320 tons of wet orange waste will not be sent to landfill;

• Quantity of produced organic-mineral fertiliser: 3 000 tons, sold at an average price of €270/ton, with annual potential revenues of around €810 000;

• Reduced greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and improved soil health due to the substitution of chemical fertilisers with organic-mineral ones: -20% in GHG compared to chemical fertilisers, +70% increase in soil organic matter (soil health); and

• Increased crop yield due to the substitution of chemical fertilisers with the new organic-mineral fertiliser: 30%.