American Journal of Environmental Protection 2018; 7(1): 7-13 http://www.sciencepublishinggroup.com/j/ajep doi: 10.11648/j.ajep.20180701.12 ISSN: 2328-5680 (Print); ISSN: 2328-5699 (Online) Formulated Faecal Sludge and Compost Fertilizer Pellet for Crop Production: The Case Study of the Lavender Hill Faecal Treatment Plant Dennis Ofori-Amanfo 1 , George Nana Kwesi Rockson 2 , Alfred Arthur 3 , Issahaku Ahmed 1, * 1 Sewerage Systems Ghana Ltd., Accra, Ghana 2 Zoomlion Ghana Ltd., Accra, Ghana 3 Cocoa Research Institute of Ghana, Akim Tafo, Ghana Email address: * Corresponding author To cite this article: Dennis Ofori-Amanfo, George Nana Kwesi Rockson, Alfred Arthur, Issahaku Ahmed. Formulated Faecal Sludge and Compost Fertilizer Pellet for Crop Production: The Case Study of the Lavender Hill Faecal Treatment Plant. American Journal of Environmental Protection. Vol. 7, No. 1, 2018, pp. 7-13. doi: 10.11648/j.ajep.20180701.12 Received: February 19, 2018; Accepted: March 5, 2018; Published: March 24, 2018 Abstract: The application of excreta-based fertilizers has attracted attention due to the increasing prices of chemically produced fertilizers and low soil fertility problem of the agricultural land. This study was carried out to assess the efficacy of mixed dried Faecal Sludge (DFS) and municipal organic Compost pelletized on lettuce production. Faecal sludge was dried and mixed with compost produced from Accra Compost and Recycling Plant (ACRP). Analysis of the characteristics of Dry Faecal Sludge and Compost informed in the formulation of three (3) different composition in accordance with estimated variation on percentage nitrogen of 1.5%, 2.0% and 2.5%. The ratios were 1:3.3, 1:1.1 and 1:0.4 (w/w) of Dry Faecal Sludge and Compost respectively. The mixed formulation was pelletized using a pelletizer machine. Starch and clay were used as binding materials for pelletization. The pelletized treatment was used in the production of lettuce. Application of the pelletized treatments confirmed that, pelletize mix of Dry Faecal Sludge and Compost with starch as a binder is highly recommended as it had greater significant effect (p<0.05) on Lettuce Height, wet weight and number of leafs. M3 with ratio 1:0.4 (w/w) DM basis of faecal sludge and compost recorded the highest average dry weight of lettuce. Keywords: Compost, Dried Faecal Sludge, Pelletization Binders, Fertilizer, Lettuce 1. Introduction In Ghana, as in most parts of Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), human excreta from on-site sanitation systems are dumped in the environment without any appropriate treatment [1]. Waste management is a critical issue in Ghana’s cities. Collection and disposal services are failing to cope with the increasing waste generation that comes with the highest urban growth rates in the world [2]. Excessive land application of raw sewage leads to water pollution through run-off, often culminating in fish kills, eutrophication, high ammonia losses to the atmosphere accompanied by serious odour problems causing a public nuisance. It is believed that poor sanitation costs Ghana about $290 million per year according to a desk study carried out by the Water and Sanitation Program [3, 12- 13]. An average of 700 m 3 of FS from an average of 100 tankers is disposed off at Korle Gonno every day in the capital [4]. Mineral fertilizer use in Ghana is extremely low; application rate is estimated to be 7.42 kg per hectare per year which is one of the lowest in sub Saharan Africa [5] due to prohibitive cost as a result of privatization and removal of government subsidies. The high cost of chemical fertilizer and the current global shift toward organic farming have led to increase in the demand for organic-based fertilizers [6]. This situation therefore suggests the need to identify an alternative cheap source of nutrients for replenishing soil nutrients without necessarily resorting to the use of mineral