Quantity, characteristics and management of pond-bottom sludge from shrimp farms in Sarawak : a preliminary study

With rapid expansion of shrimp farming in Sarawak, the management and disposal of pond-bottom solid sludge has become problematic. This study was conducted to obtain more information about the quantity, characteristics, and management methods in the State. The quantities of sludge generated from one crop of shrimp were estimated in 10 shrimp ponds located in the Kuching and Samarahan areas. Physical and chemical analyses were performed on sludge samples collected from these ponds. The amount of sludge estimated ib the ponds and the characteristics of the sludge samples were compared with similar past studies and with typical soil properties. Sludge production amounted to 181-881 mt/ha/crop (486+ 289 mt/ha/crop) in the ponds studied. The sludge samples had mineral content of 77.3-88.5% (84.7+3.7%) and were largely made up of caly-size particles. The organic matter content ranged from 11.5-22.7% (15.3+3.7%)