Title: Impact assessment of pre- and post-sown irrigation with Post Methanation distillery Effluent on soil health and crop yield

Authors: Sanjeev Tripathi, H.C. Joshi, Anoop Singh

Addresses: Division of Environmental Sciences, Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi 110 012, India. ' Division of Environmental Sciences, Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi 110 012, India. ' Environmental Research Institute (ERI), University College Cork, Ireland

Abstract: Field experiments were conducted to assess the optimum dilution of Post Methanation distillery Effluent (PME) to utilise as an organic nutrient source for growing rice and wheat crops. Dilution levels of distillery effluent significantly affected the biomass production as well as grain yield of rice and wheat crops. Levels of organic carbon and NPK were significantly higher in effluent treated soils. The crop performance and yield with distillery effluents alone were overall less than that produced by distillery effluents with chemical fertilisers, probably on account of failure of the effluents to supply balanced nutrition to the plants for achieving their potential growth capacity.

Keywords: distillery effluent; PME; post methanation effluent; ferti-irrigation; IPNM; integrated plant nutrient management; rice; wheat; soil health; crop yield; organic nutrients; biomass production; irrigation.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEE.2010.035457

International Journal of Environmental Engineering, 2010 Vol.2 No.4, pp.401 - 413

Published online: 30 Sep 2010 *

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