Lana di pecora come ammendante naturale: una risorsa a sostegno dell'economia circolare

The present paper shows the possible use of the sheep's wool in the agricultural cultivations with a view of a circular economy and an efficient use of resources (directives n. 849-850-851- 852/2018/EU on waste, circular economy package). The wool used in this study was subjected to industrial washing and applied in two field experiments in a sandy loam soil, on two different species: Phaseulus vulgaris L. (green bean) and Spinacia oleracia L. (spinach). The wool was distributed at a depth of 20 cm, and mixed with soil in the first 20 cm of depth. The results showed an increase in biomass and production of green beans three times higher than in control (without wool) and in spinach, an increase in leaf size, but not in overall biomass. The proposed solution is in line with the EU's objectives for the reduction in the waste produced, landfill diversion targets and the simultaneous strengthening provisions on waste prevention by means of the increase of recycling of biodegradable waste. In fact, it meets the key principles governing the "circular economy" model, such as 1) unused value (someone's waste and unused material become resources for someone else), 2) waste as raw materials (secondary raw material generation and reduce the consumption of primary virgin raw materials), 3) end of materials early death (longer lifecycle).