| abstract |
A vermicomposting system for treating wastewater streams includes a pretreatment step for converting liquid or semi-liquid organic waste streams to a feedstock for vermicomposting; a vermicomposting digestion step having worm and beneficial bacteria populations that consume and decompose organic material and nutrients present in the feedstock of the pretreatment step to create worm twists, vermicompost, and a liquid compost tea that contains plant nutrients, plant growth promoting substances, and beneficial bacteria; and a post-treatment step in which the liquid compost tea is removed for use as an inoculant or soil amendment, or is further treated in a separate containment tank in which nutrients and oxygen levels are controlled for increase specific bacterial and fungal populations. |