Distribution, incidence and farmers knowledge of banana Xanthomonas wilt in Burundi

Banana Xanthomonas wilt (BXW) is a devastating bacterial disease caused by Xanthomonas campestris pv. musacearum. The disease was simultaneously reported in Cankuzo and Bubanza provinces, Burundi, in November 2010. However, the extent to which the disease has spread to other banana growing regions in the country is unknown. Therefore, to ascertain the distribution and incidence of the disease and farmers’ knowledge on measures to control the disease, a survey was conducted in all 16 banana growing provinces of Burundi in August 2011. A total of 208 farms were sampled, selecting six farms per surveyed commune, three affected and three non-affected. The survey was conducted using a structured questionnaire. The disease was present in 10 out of 16 provinces constituting all agricultural lands in Burundi. The highest incidence was recorded in Ruyigi province (34%), where the Kayinja system is dominant and the lowest in Muyinga (3%), where the East African Highland bananas (EAHB) dominate. Awareness of BXW symptoms, modes of spread and control measures was generally low, ranging from 8 to 30% of households surveyed. The limited knowledge of the disease among farmers was thought to be largely responsible for driving the epidemic in Burundi

Exploring a New Approach of the Population Equivalent Concept through a Detailed Characterization of Grey and Black Waters

Reliable and accurate data from on-site facilities are important for modelling the biochemical processes occurring in wastewatertreatment bioreactors. This study aimed to redefine the concept of population equivalent through a detailed analysis of grey andblack waters. The concept of population enables the determination of the overall pollutant load from various houses connected toa collective treatment plant. Several chemical compounds and physicochemical parameters including lipids, total nitrogen,proteins, carbohydrates, and total chemical oxygen demand (COD), were assessed in grey and black waters samples collected inBelgium and Burundi, and expressed in population equivalent unit. Our results showed that the total COD corresponding to onepopulation equivalent unit in Burundi and Belgium was 117.08±10.09 g COD/capita/day and 138.75±20.09 g COD/capita/day,respectively. The total COD in Belgian experiments was distributed as 34.26% for faeces, 19.01% for waters from kitchen sinks,16.26% for the grey waters from the laundry, and 10.97%, 15.36% and 4.14% for toilet paper, shower soaps and urine,respectively. Results from Burundi samples revealed that laundry detergents, toilet paper and shower soaps were 14.70±0.40g/capita/day, 12.20±0.40 g/capita/day and 5.00±0.30 g/capita/day, respectively. The quantity of the main chemical compounds inboth grey and black waters ranged from 0.37±0.18 to 35.17±6.82 g/capita/day, with average values of 8.33, 10.37, 17.75, 12.27,and 35.17 g/capita/day for lipids, total nitrogen, laundry detergents, proteins and carbohydrates, respectively. Our findings arevaluable information that can be explored for the determination of the "complex substrate biomole" formula, which is useful formodelling the processes involved in wastewater treatmen