Flow-through aquaculture facilities regularly collect solids or "manure" which consists of feces, uneaten feed, and other sediments. The common use for fish manure is direct application to cropland. However, for many fish producers land application is costly, inconvenient, or simply unavailable. Composting offers the potential to improve manure management by converting the manure to compost, thus expanding its possible uses. This project investigated the composting characteristics of trout manure from commercial aquaculture facilities. The results of this study showed that composting characteristics varied with the source and handling of the manure. The manure stabilized quickly, though the time varied with the "age" of the manure (i.e. the point collected in the aquaculture system). In all cases, particles of the amendments were still visible after the manure had stopped heating. Therefore, additional time may be necessary to decompose the amendments to produce a "finished compost." Given its quick stabilization, trout manure is suited to composting methods that support rapid decomposition, especially if undecomposed amendments can be screened out or tolerated in the end product.
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