Composting plant

The Moraro composting plant

45° 55' 2,299'' N, 13° 30' 1.455'' E

45.9178609496, 13.5004043916

The composting plant of Isontina Ambiente is located in Moraro, in the Gesimis area.

The plant (which at the moment is in a revamping phase) can annually treat up to 18,000 tons of waste, i.e. the wet fraction of separate collection and the green waste derived from mowing and pruning coming from all the municipalities of the former province of Gorizia and from the municipalities of Duino Aurisina, Sgonico - Zgonik and Monrupino in the province of Trieste.

How it works

All organic waste that enters the composting plant is checked at the weighing station where the weight, the type of waste and the municipality of origin are automatically recorded by means of the identification badge of each collection vehicle.

The incoming green waste is deposited on an external surface, where it is shredded and then mixed with the wet fraction, while the wet fraction is placed in special containment tanks located inside the reception area.

Once the mixing (on average 60% of wet and 40% of green waste) and the stirring are completed, the mixture is automatically sent to the accelerated oxidation section.

This section is formed by 7 lanes 60 metres long and 3 metres wide, surrounded by perimeter walls. The material deposited on the lanes is moved by a turner that pushes it forward every day – at each passage the material is moved 4 meters forward. The turner helps the oxygenation of the mixture and the related composting process. In the accelerated oxidation area the wet / green mix remains for 21 days.

All the activity of the turner is managed through a dedicated software which monitors the movements that the machine makes, moving along the entire length of the lanes on a translation trolley. Once the accelerated oxidation phase is over, the material is deposited in the ripening area for a minimum period of 70 days and moved once every two weeks by a wheel turner controlled by an operator in a pressurized cabin. In this area the composting process of the material is completed. The compost, before being made available, undergoes a screening operation necessary to capture any non-compostable residues.

At the end of this process, the compost is deposited in a dedicated area where it will be packed or collected to be used. Considering the weight and water loss that characterize the composting process, a compost quantity equivalent to 30% of the mixture of green and wet waste entered the plant is obtained.

All the closed treatment rooms of the composting plant are kept in a slight depression to help the aspiration of the air which is then treated by the two biofilters operating respectively in the ripening area and in the area where the accelerated transfer and oxidation take place. The biofilters that deodorize the air sucked in the rooms are large concrete tanks almost 3 meters deep. Inside these tanks a layer of shredded wood about 2 metres thick is deposited. The air sucked from the rooms through air ducts is conveyed to a fan that blows it towards the base of the tank, from where it goes up and crosses the biofiltering bed, releasing the odour molecules.

The compost produced by this process undergoes laboratory analyses that certify its quality; this certification is always supplied to all users who take large quantities of compost for agricultural use.

Compost is used in particular for winegrowing but also, more in general, for the cultivation of all agricultural products.

During the various stages of composting, the remaining waste is treated in compliance with the rules that regulate the transfer of non-recyclable or reusable materials.

In particular, the leachate collected on the internal flooring, the liquid generated by biofilters, and the water collected in the green management area are stored in an underground tank and are later sent for disposal to treatment centres.