AN ECONOMIC STUDY FOR CYCLING PLANT WASTES AND ITS ROLE IN THE AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT

摘要

The study has explored the economic and environmental magnitude of cycling the plant wastes with their diversified use and added economic utility. The main objective of this study is to examine the development of by-product and its relation to main product for the most important agricultural crops in order to produce the energy required to farmers' daily activities and animal feeds, which are of a higher nutritious value as silage. This will contribute in achieving the agricultural development in itseconomic, social, and environmental dimensions for farmer and state alike. It has been revealed that the wastes of cereal and cotton crops significantly increased. The quantity of plant wastes used as a fuel in producing energy represents about 61.48%ofthe gross by-product at the national level, and the annual lost energy due to the misuse of these wastes is equivalent to 1602 million liters, 828 million kilograms, 1923 million liters in a value of about LE 961.20, 643.68 and 1538.40 million for kerosene, butagas and benzene respectively. The annual loss in organic material, Nitrogen, Phosphate, and Potassium, has been estimated by 12.96, 0.21, 0.06, 0.24 million tons respectively, in a value of about LE 3437.70 million. Also, it has been found thatfarmer can gain a net return of about LE 2705 per feddan from cycling maize stalks, per feddan of maize, into silage that can be used in feeding farm animals. This may increase the net return per feddan of maize to LE 3245, in addition to its significanteffect on production cost, net return per kilogram of milk, and net return of Egyptian pound invested in dairy products. Finally, the study recommended that plant wastes use shaved by rationalized, and should be substituted by the farm animals' wastes.Also, plant wastes should be cycled to produce silage, for feeding milk animals, which have a positive effect on increasing farmers' income, decreasing cost per unit of milk, and on increasing net return on LE invested in dairy products.