Ecotoxicity of swine wastewater using the earthworms Eisenia andrei as bioindicator

Abstract

The waste generated by pig farmings has high toxic potential, however, its high organic load, makes them a good product for fertilization of agricultural soils. The aim of this work was to study the environmental effects arising from the use of swine wastewater using as bioindicators earthworms of the species Eisenia andrei through the parameters of lethality, avoidance and reproduction. We studied the application of biodigester wastewater and manure storage tanks wastewater in four doses (0, 100, 200 and 300 m³ ha^-1) in three different soils (Oxisol, Kandiudox and Artificial Tropical Soil). The studied wastes did not cause any lethality or escape. The reproduction test showed, in most of the experiments that the plots with treated soil had an average number of hatched juveniles above those of control plots. The application of biodigester wastewater and manure storage tanks wastewater up to the dose of 300 m³ ha^-1 does not negatively affect earthworm populations in the three soils analyzed.