Effect of Utilization of Organic Waste as Agricultural Amendment on Soil Microbial Biomass

The use of organic wastes, from municipal and industrial activities, as source of plant nutrients and soil conditioners increased worldwide. However, there is a concern with the environmental pollution.
Currently, these organic wastes are disposed in open dump in developing countries or in landfills in the developed ones. The main soil indicator used to evaluate the effect of organic wastes on soil is soil microbial biomass.
Soil microbial biomass is very sensitive to environmental impact and there are already several studies evaluating the effect of organic wastes on soil microbial properties. Nowadays, the studies are focusing soil microbial diversity as the use of molecular biology tools.
The current review addresses the effects of use of organic waste, from municipal and industrial sources, in agriculture and their effects on soil microbial biomass.