EFEKTIVITAS AKTIVATOR MIKROORGANIME LOKAL LIMBAH SAYURAN, FESES SAPI DAN EM4 PADA PEMBUATAN KOMPOS DARI LIMBAH SAYURAN

Effectiveness of Local Microorganism Activators from Vegetable Waste, Cow Feces, and EM4 in Compost Production from Vegetable Waste

Abstract

Vegetable waste is an organic waste commonly produced from market and household activities. If not properly managed, this waste can cause environmental pollution and produce unpleasant odors. One effort to handle organic waste is through composting. Activators such as local microorganisms (MOL), cow feces, and EM4 can accelerate decomposition and improve compost quality. This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of vegetable waste MOL, cow feces MOL, and EM4 activators on the physical quality of compost made from vegetable waste. This study was conducted from September to October 2025 at the Tamalanrea Lecturer Housing Complex. The experiment was conducted using a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) consisting of four treatments and five replications, namely P0 (100% vegetable waste without activator), P1 (vegetable waste + 0.6% vegetable waste MOL), P2 (vegetable waste + 0.6% cow feces MOL), and P3 (vegetable waste + 0.6% EM4). The observed parameters included temperature, pH, moisture content, color, odor, and texture during the 35-day composting process. The results showed that all treatments experienced changes in temperature, pH, moisture, color, and odor during composting. Compost temperature ranged from 25–33°C and stabilized by the end of the composting period. The compost pH ranged from 4.5 to 5.9. The cow feces MOL treatment showed faster decomposition than the other treatments, as shown by a quicker color change to dark brownish-black and a shift to a soil-like aroma on the 7th day. EM4 and vegetable waste MOL treatments showed slower changes in these parameters. It can be concluded that using cow feces MOL activator was the best treatment for composting vegetable waste because it produced better physical compost quality and a faster compost maturity time, in accordance with SNI 19-7030-2004 standards.