Fabricio Camacho's Research Page
Welcome to my Page!
My research focuses in developing innovations that increase the productivity, as well as the environmental and socio-economic performance of small farms in the mountainous region of the new world's tropics.
Optimized compost with cultures of native soil microorganisms and digestates from anaerobic digesters applied to coffee seedlings
My current research project focuses in the bio-optimization of compost through the integration of cultures of native soil microorganisms and digestates from anaerobic digestors. My results show that it is possible to increase the nutrient levels as well as the organic matter content, the microbial biomass and the humidity retention potential of the final compost when these alternative materials are used in the mix.
The utilization of optimized compost will help farmers rebuild the natural fertility of the soil, while decreasing their level of synthetic fertilizer use, which in turn reduces the amount of nitrous oxide emissions (a powerful greenhouse gas that has ~300 times the heating capacity of CO2), and increases the economic viability of their agroecosystems.
Native soil microorganisms transform organic matter into compost
Professional collaborations (in no particular order)
Dr. Lidieth Uribe, Center for Agronomic Research, University of Costa Rica
Dr. Karen Masters, CIEE Sustainability Center Monteverde, Costa Rica
Dr. Maureen Kinyua, University of California-Davis, USA
Dr. Quint Newcomer, University of Georgia, USA
Dr. Norman Gentsch, Leibniz University of Hannover, Germany
Dr. Sarina Ergas, University of South Florida, USA
Internships and graduate students
Kevin Orner, University of South Florida, PhD student USF, USA, Nutrient recovery from Anaerobic Digestion. 2018
Dr. Maureen Kinyua, University of California-Davis, USA, Anaerobic Digestion. 2015
RECENT publications
Agriculture in Monteverde, Moving Toward Sustainability — Update 2014 . In Monteverde, Ecolodgy and Conservation of a Tropical Cloud Forest. Joseph D. Stuckey, Fabricio Camacho Céspedes, Guillermo Vargas L., Sarah A. Stuckey, and José Vargas L. N. M. Nadkarni & N. T. Wheelwright (Eds.). Bowdoin's Scholars' Bookshelf. Book: https://digitalcommons.bowdoin.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1004&context=scholars-bookshelf Page 82.
Use of physical and biological process models to understand the performance of tubular anaerobic digesters: Maureen N. Kinyua, Jie Zhang, Fabricio Camacho-Cespedes, Andres Tejada-Martinez, and Sarina J. Ergas. 2016 Paper: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1369703X15301157
Does the use of tubular digesters to treat livestock waste lower the risk of infection from Cryptosporidium parvum and Giardia lamblia?: Maureen N. Kinyua, Ileana Wald, Fabricio Camacho-Céspedes, Ricardo Izurieta, Charles N. Haas, Sarina J. Ergas. 2016 Paper: http://jwh.iwaponline.com/content/14/5/738
Compost Bio-optimization with cultures of mountain microorganisms (MM) and digested sludge from bio-digester (LDBIO): Fabricio Camacho Céspedes, Lidieth Uribe Lorío, Quint Newcomer, Karen Masters, Maureen Kinyua. 2018 Paper: http://investiga.uned.ac.cr/revistas/index.php/cuadernos/article/viewFile/2163/2532
Contact information
Fabricio Camacho
University of Georgia Costa Rica Campus
General Manager and Associate Director
San Luis de Monteverde
Puntarenas
p:
e: