Grow Your Garden Radio

Welcome to “Grow Your Garden Radio: Where It’s Easy to Be Green!

manure

today’s topic comes with a warning because it ripe with the potential for a lot of lowbrow humor, puns and bad dad jokes.  I’m planning on taking advantage of those opportunities. So, here we go let’s step right in it and see how it all comes out In the end.

The United states produces about 1.4 billion tons of manure annually from its livestock and poultry operations. to quote Jeff Goldblum’s character from Jurassic Park that’s one big pile of shit.

In reality, Jeff it’s not a pile. The solids from the animal waste product are separated and used after processing for bedding and other purposes, usually on the site where it was created. The liquid gets stored for recycling right on the farm or to be sold for further processing.

Managing all that manure is a major industry in itself. Huge retention ponds store the liquid manure from dairy operations until it can be either spread on the farm to nourish feed crop for the animals or sold for processing for other uses. 

One dairy farm in North Dakota with about 1600 head of cattle pumps about 3 million gallons of manure into their crop fields every spring and winter. This bypasses the need to purchase and apply  fertilizer from outside sources. Its the ultimate recycling program.

Livestock benefit from the high quality feed that they contribute to through their waste products. The liquid manure is very high in available nitrogen along with other nutrients that feed crops thrive on. And so the cycle goes.

It doesn’t seem accurate to call this material a waste product. I think raw material is probably more descriptive. Not only can it be used for fertilizer to grow crops, it can also be used to create fuel to power farm equipment and even large electric generators for local industry.

One farm in Hadley has an incredible anaerobic digester that takes local food waste along with liquid manure from their dairy operation to produce enough bio gas to power a 300 kilowatt engine.  Annually this produces more than 2000 MW hours  of electrical energy. If my arithmetic is correct that’s enough energy to power over 500 average homes for a year.

In an article in the Smithsonian magazine in may of 2023 and on their website barstowslongviewfarm.com they explain how the anaerobic digester works in what is a rather brilliant way. They describe it as a large tank, that much like a cow’s stomach allows microorganisms to decompose the raw materials. That produces odor free liquid fertilizer and biogas.

 They report that the system also sequesters 85% of the greenhouse gases produced on their farm.

Search for the Smithsonian article or barstow’s Longview farm.com or go to growyourgardenradio.com and look for the show notes for episode 5.

You’ll find Links to the articles and websites plus a link to the YouTube channel for that North Dakota farmer.

So how does this apply to your backyard garden that probably doesn’t need a tanker full of liquid cow poop?

For the retail market, composted cow manure is easily available either from local farms or from any hardware store by the bag. Purchasing from a local farm helps support what’s usually a local family business. You can also have more confidence in the quality of the product that you’re getting because it is produced by a neighbor.

So what about other types of animal manure and what’s the safest way to use it?

In general the manure from herbivores specifically cows horses sheep goats chicken and llamas when used properly can be safe.

 However pig dog cat and human waste is considered too risky to take a chance for non ornamental plants. Such manures carried the potential of human susceptible pathogens and make it too risky to use on vegetables whose edible portion is below the ground and in contact with those manures.

The University of New Hampshire extension office suggests that you wait at least 120 days after applying raw or aged manure to harvest crops that grow in or near the soil like root crops leafy    greens strawberries wait at least 90 days for other crops. This gives the soil microbiome in your garden the opportunity to neutralize most pathogens. After thoroughly washing, the vegetables are usually considered safe to eat.

While some types of manure are considered safer for use in gardening, it’s important to note that all manure can contain pathogens that might affect humans. These human pathogens, which can be harmful microorganisms like bacteria, viruses, or parasites, are present even in manures deemed safer. Therefore, it’s essential to handle all types of manure with care to prevent any potential health risks.

Wear gloves, eye protection, and if the product you’re applying is very dry and dusty, make sure you Use respiratory protection. Be sure to wash thoroughly when you’re done working. Take care not to cross contaminate anything inside your house with soiled clothing from the garden .

The University of Massachusetts Center for agriculture food and the environment has an excellent article on fertilizing guidelines find the link in the show notes or go to University of Massachusetts Amherst and search for fertilizing guidelines on their website.

Other animal manure like rabbit and chicken can also be used either composted or raw taking into account the already mentioned precautions. You do have to be careful not to burn your plants, however. Both of these manures are high in nitrogen so if you don’t carefully apply it you can burn the tender  roots of young plants.

Making a so-called manure or compost tea can make application a little easier. Let some manure steep in a bucket of water for a few days. apply the tea evenly by  pouring it close to but not directly on the base of the plants. This is called side dressing where you apply any type of amendment in a little furrow a couple inches away from the root bulb.

And finally for today we have bat guano.

Bat guano is harvested from the floors of the caves that bats call home. The guano that accumulates on the floor of those caves can be decades old if not older. Additionally a whole ecosystem of microorganisms and insects add their processing if you want to call it that to the guano. This brew that is created has a tremendous amount of the basic nutrients along with many additional nutrients that plants can thrive on.

Many growers find this black gold exactly what their plants need to bring them over the top in health and vitality.

A major concern however is that the harvesting is very detrimental to the ecosystem in which it was created. Bat colonies numbering in the 1,000,000 have been extinguished because of unethical harvesting procedures.

Such devastation can very negatively impact the ecosystem outside of the bat colony because bats are vital to not only some pollination activity but insect control.

A biologist by the name of Merlin Tuttle who is widely regarded as the world’s expert on bats reports that millions of free tailed bats from bracken cave in Texas eat more than 100 tons of insects nightly which is a tremendous service to local Texas farmers, and the general population.

Go to merlintuttle.org and you will find an incredible amount of information based on his 60 plus years of rooting around in the habitats of bats all around the world.

He is very concerned about the harvesting of guano and the negative impact it has on bat colonies and the ensuing damage on the Larger ecosystem.

Many producers are now working at being good stewards of the bat colonies with sustainable and less invasive harvesting techniques.

Manure plays a crucial role in Earth’s life cycles by returning essential nutrients to the soil, promoting plant growth and soil health. This natural fertilizer enhances microbial activity, decomposes organic matter, and improves soil structure and water retention. Through nutrient recycling, manure supports sustainable agriculture, helps reduce chemical fertilizer dependency, and minimizes environmental impact.  Overall, manure is an integral component of nutrient cycles, enriching ecosystems and fostering biodiversity.

As always thank you so much for your time and your interest in this show. Go to growyourgardenradio.com to listen to past episodes, leave comments, or access free show notes and other resources for further exploration. Today’s episode has quite a few more resources for further investigation than usual. I hope you find them useful. Thank you for listening to grow your garden radio where it’s easy to be green.

Bat Guano: Fertilizer or the Health Hazard?
Vol 49 No. 2 March 2018 331
Correspondence: Dr Isareethika Jayasvasti,
ASEAN Institute for Health Development,
Mahidol University, Nakhon Pathom 73170,
Thailand.
Tel: +66 (0) 2441 9040-3 ext 21; Fax: +66 (0)
2441 9044
E-mail: graphkodomo@gmail.com
REVIEW
BAT GUANO AS THE COMPONENT OF FERTILIZER
OR THE HEALTH HAZARD?
Isareethika Jayasvasti1 and Manisthawadee Jayasvasti2
1ASEAN Institute for Health Development, Mahidol University, Nakhon Pathom;
2Department of Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Engineering,
Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand
Abstract. Phosphorus is an important element for life since to it is the component
of human and animal bodies and it is the composition of plant, the food of human
and some animals. Fertilizer is compose of phosphorus, the limited element in the
current situation that is also the vital mineral for agricultural sector. Although
phosphorus can be extracted from phosphate rock, the quality and quantity may
be not enough for using the global scale. The new sources of phosphorus are now
from waste and wastewater recovery or guano extraction. Bat guano is rich in
phosphate, but it is also the cause of the outbreak of zoonoses through inhalation
of fungal spores Histoplasma capsulatum, the health hazard that can cause various
losses for humans. Policies must be made to solve the health problem from bat
guano harvesting to replace the use of phosphate rock with the integrated collaboration
of all relevant parties. The objective of this review is to give information
nowadays about the realization of phosphorus scarcity, to manifest the advantage
of bat guano as phosphorus source and also as histoplasmosis outbreak for making
the decision of whether to use bat guano or not in phosphorus inadequacy issue
as well as to present the safety and security policies for bat guano collection in
case of bat guano will be used as phosphorus source.
Keywords: bat guano, zoonotic diseases, histoplasmosis, phosphorus scarcity,
fertilizer
INTRODUCTION
In general, phosphorus seems to be
eliminated more than recovered due to
it is the cause of eutrophication, the environmental
pollution. Nowadays, there
are full of reasons that phosphorus must
be recovered. Firstly, from the continued
world population growth, the need of
food is also in high level that require
more phosphorus consumption. Phosphorous
is the essential element related to
growth factor of plant, the food of human
and some animals, by stimulating root
growth, concerning the quality of fruit
and being the disease resistance (Walan,
2013). Secondly, phosphorus is also the
Southeast Asian J Trop Med Public Health
332 Vol 49 No. 2 March 2018
important element for human because it
is the component of human bodies such
as bones, teeth, DNA, RNA and ATP and
also for stimulating nerves system and fixing
tissues (Smil, 2000). Last but not least,
phosphorus is the limited element that
means it cannot be constructed, destroyed
or replaced by other elements, it can only
be recycled or recovered (Walan, 2013)
that is why phosphorus is now shortage
in the current situation.
The objective of this review is to give
information nowadays about the realization
of phosphorus scarcity, to manifest
the advantage of bat guano as phosphorus
source and also as histoplasmosis outbreak
for making the decision of whether
to use bat guano or not in phosphorus
inadequacy issue as well as to present the
safety and security policies for bat guano
collection in case of bat guano will be used
as phosphorus source.
We thoroughly searched journals in
NCBI database using keywords Histoplasma
capsulatum, zoonoses, fungal infections,
bat guano and zoonoses, bat and bat guano
and bat viruses; journals in NCBI-NIH database
using keywords Histoplasma capsulatum,
bat viruses, bat guano exposure and
histoplasmosis; journal also in ICI database
using keyword bat and bat guano as well as
journals in SCImaco using keyword fungi
isolate from cave without restricted date
of the publication.
LACK OF ADEQUATE PHOSPHORUS
RESOURCES FOR FOOD
AGRICULTURE
Lack of phosphorus used for fertilizer
is the bad situation that the world
will surface in the near future, therefore,
phosphorous scarcity situation for food
agriculture should be defined at local,
national and international scales. From the
estimation of global phosphorus reserves
in the future by using different types of
model such as exponential production
models system, dynamic models and
bell-shaped curve models as well as from
the prediction of maximum phosphorus
production by using periodic analysis
such as world phosphate rock exports as
percent of production, ultimate recoverable
resources (URR) and other methods,
they showed that phosphorus reserves
tend to be reduced in the future owing to
less amount and high price of phosphate
rock. The global phosphate rock reserves
in the future were estimated to be last for
300-400 years or maybe reduced faster
than the prediction due to the uncertain
growth rate of world population that
makes the peak phosphorus production
might reach within 2020 (Walan, 2013).
For this reason, phosphorus from other
sources such as the recovery from waste
and wastewater as well as the extraction
from bat guano are the better ways to
have new phosphorus sources used to be
as fertilizer in agricultural sector, but the
latter way maybe the cause of zoonoses.
ZOONOSES DEFINITION AND
DRAWBACKS
Zoonoses or zoonotic diseases, are an
important public health concern as fungal
infection for the human population (Wood
et al, 2012). Zoonoses are the cause of various
losses for humans including: loss of
working days, abandonment of farming or
agricultural activities, cost for diagnosis
of the disease and medical fees as well as
disability and mortality (Battelli, 2008).
The World Health Organization
(WHO) defines zoonoses as “Those diseases
and infection which are naturally
transmitted between vertebrate animals
Bat Guano: Fertilizer or the Health Hazard?
Vol 49 No. 2 March 2018 333
and man” and the other definitions are
firstly, an occupational disease which
subject to animal husbandry and related
activities such as collection, transportation
and extraction of manure or guano
(Battelli, 2008); secondly, zoonoses means
communicable diseases between human
and vertebrate animals such as pets and
wild animals that communicate from
animals to human or human to animals
(Laima, 1988). These are reasons why
people should be aware of the disease
related to contact with animals.
BAT AND BAT GUANO
Bats are Mammalia in the species
Chiroptera that have mostly nocturnal
activity (Vandžurova et al, 2012). There
are two main types: megabats (Megachiroptera)
and microbats (Microchiroptera)
(Suwannarong and Schuler, 2016).
Megabats are found in the subtropics
and tropics of Asia and Africa feeding on
fruit, leaves, and water. Microbats feed
on insects as their primary food and they
are geographically more widespread than
the megabats (Suwannarong and Schuler,
2016), therefore, their guano were used
as fertilizer (Kamins et al, 2015). Guano is
the excrement produced by cave-dwelling
bats (FAO, 2011) and can be used as an
organic fertilizer.
Guano deposit is important to agricultural
enterprise as a source of phosphorus,
either as guano or rock phosphate (high
percentage of phosphorus rock result from
leaching guano deposits) (Richards et al,
2014). Composition of guano may vary depending
on the diet of bats (Vandžurova
et al, 2012).
Natural bat guano development process
Bat guano deposits located in coastal
and caves. Plants are eaten by insects,
which are then eaten by bats. After the
digestion has taken place, the bats excrete
droppings onto the cave floor which are
consumed by guano beetles and decomposing
microbes. This process helps to
eliminate most viruses that might have
passed from a bat to its fecal (Buliga,
2010).
Bat guano is a very rich fertilizer, due
to its high content of carbon and the three
vital primary macronutrients: nitrogen,
phosphorus and potassium (N-P-K) as
well as important secondary minerals
such as calcium and magnesium that help
control soil pH (Buliga, 2010; Shetty et al,
2013). Bat guano is superior to bird guano
in higher nitrogen and potassium, moreover,
live micro bacterial flora is another
essential content in bat guano for plants
which helps absorb the nutrients in bat
guano and helps in resistance to plant
diseases and fungi, so it is widely used
in agriculture for fertilization of plants.
(Buliga, 2010; Shetty et al, 2013).
HISTOPLASMOSIS: INFECTION AND
OUTBREAK
Histoplasmosis
Histoplasmosis is an infectious disease
originates from spores of Histoplasma
capsulatum through the inhalation that can
cause respiratory problems and are costly
to treat (Heymann, 2004; Buliga, 2010).
H. capsulatum grows in soils and also has
been found in habitats of bats (Ajello and
Weeks, 1983; Walsh et al, 2003). The mold
form of H. capsulatum can affect person’s
lung and the fungus form can spread to
other organs outside the lungs that will
be the cause combination of symptoms,
including headache, fever, chest pain, dry
cough and loss of appetite (Steven et al,
2004; Mitchell, 1992). Symptom depends
Southeast Asian J Trop Med Public Health
334 Vol 49 No. 2 March 2018
on the number of spores inhaled, age of
person and resistance to the disease (Steven
et al, 2004). In some cases of receiving
medical treatment, death still can occur
(Wheat et al, 1990). Histoplasmosis can
be diagnosed by identifying H. capsulatum
in a symptomatic person’s tissues
or secretions, testing the patient’s blood
serum, urine and other body fluids for H.
capsulatum antigen (Deepe, 2000).
Outbreak investigation
Histoplasmosis outbreaks can occur
among infected people even they had no
part in the activities related to contaminated
aerosolized material (Chamany et al,
2004). Investigations of community outbreaks
of fungal infection resulted in a better
understanding of fungal diseases, their
sources/routes and modes of transmission
as well as the risk factors for the endemic
fungal infections, such as histoplasmosis,
blastomycosis and coccidioidomycosis
that leads to more effective prevention
and control strategies for further cases
(Ellis et al, 2000).
BAT GUANO EXPOSURE AND
DANGER
Harmful from bat guano
Unfortunately, bat guano is one of the
energy sources for fungi development,
it means that bat guano may serves as a
reservoir or vector of several zoonoses
(Poulson and Lavoie, 2000; Nováková,
2009).
Bats serve as a reservoir of many
harmful diseases (Richards et al, 2014)
including, Ebola and Marburg viruses
(Leroy et al, 2005; Towner et al, 2007; Leroy
et al, 2009; Towner et al, 2009; Hayman
et al, 2010), severe acute respiratory syndrome
(SARS)-like coronaviruses (Ksiazek
et al, 2003; Wang et al, 2006; Field,
2009), Hendra virus (Murray et al, 1995),
Nipah virus (Luby et al, 2009), rabies and
rabies-related viruses (Wood et al, 2012),
moreover, guano harvesting in a cave
increases exposure to zoonotic diseases
such as white-nose, so these are resulted in
unsustainable guano harvesting practices
(Richards et al, 2014).
Bat guano exposure
Health hazards from excreta reuse are
hazard to those who expose to bats, bat
guano, and bat excreta result from direct
contact with bat-borne viruses (Feachem
et al, 1983; Richard and Jenkins, 2008).
Guano is hazardous to workers working
in a guano cave owing to three main dangers:
diseases that have transmitted from
the bats to their droppings, imbedded
viruses in the guano and histoplasmosis
(Buliga, 2010). A person can be reinfected
after re-exposure to Histoplasma capsulatum
and a person who works or lives
where airborne material contaminated
with H. capsulatum exists can develop histoplasmosis
by longer durations of exposure
or exposure to higher concentrations
in a short time (Wheat, 2000; Steven et al,
2004). The severity of infections ranges
from mild to life-threatening (Carreto-
Binaghi et al, 2015). From the study of
Suwannarong and Schuler (2016) focused
on which groups of people who exposed
to bats and bat excreta are the risk group
in the context of guano sale as fertilizer.
The results showed that three groups of
people were the most at risk: the guano
mine operator, guano-mixing worker and
the person who dry, package, and/or purchase
the guano at the mine site groups.
SAFETY AND SECURITY POLICIES
FOR BAT GUANO COLLECTION
Since safety and security are the important
driving force for the prevention
Bat Guano: Fertilizer or the Health Hazard?
Vol 49 No. 2 March 2018 335
of zoonosis from bat guano collection,
the development of appropriate policies
such as cave zone management, guano
collection training, veterinary services
establishment as well as exposure reduction
must be carried on immediately. The
policies are as follows.

[Cited 2017 Aug 12]. Available from:
http:// www.diva-portal.org/smash/record.
jsf?pid=diva2:640572
Wang LF, Shi Z, Zhang S, Field H, Daszak P,
Eaton BT. Review of bats and SARS. Emerg
Infect Dis 2006; 12: 1834-40.
Wheat LJ, Connolly-Stringfield PA, Baker RL,
et al. Disseminated histoplasmosis in the
acquired immune deficiency syndrome:
clinical findings, diagnosis and treatment,
and review of the literature. Medicine (Baltimore)
1990; 69: 361-74.
Wheat LJ. Chapter 3: Histoplasmosis. In: Sarosi
GA, Davies SF, eds. Fungal diseases of the
lung. 3rd ed. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams
and Wilkins, 2000: 31-46.
Woods PSA. Changing roles for veterinarians
working with small-scale dairy farmers.
Petaling Jaya: The 11th International Conference
of The Association of Institution
for Tropical Veterinary Medicine and 16th
Veterinary Association Malasia Congress.
Petaling Jaya: Sunway Pyramid Convention
Centre, 23-27 August 2004.
Wood JLN, Leach M, Waldman L, et al. A framework
for the study of zoonotic disease
emergence and its drivers: spillover of bat
pathogens as a case study. Philos Trans R
Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2012; 367: 2881-92.

Cave zone management policy
For safety and security policies, cave
zone management should be a priority
over other policies because the protection
from any diseases should start from
prevention to correction. A safety zoning
means the disease free, is an important
control measure of animal diseases in a
form of safe trade (Fujita, 2004). There are
several types of zones as follows:
A. Free zone is a zone where disease
does not exist following the requirements
prescribed in the international standards
(Organisation for Animal Health; OIE)
(Fujita, 2004). The focus of this zone is on
early detection of surveillance (Edwards
and Abila, 2004).
B. Control zone or surveillance zone
is created to inspect the main activities
and to get rid of outbreaks (Edwards and
Abila, 2004). This zone is a 7 km radius
from the buffer zone (Kamarudin et al,
2004).
C. Buffer zones focus on transportation
control, surveillance to guard against
new infectious diseases (Edwards and
Abila, 2004). This zone is 2 km radius from
the infected zone (Kamarudin et al, 2004).
D. Infected zone is a zone within 1 km
radius from infected area (cave or farm)
(Kamarudin et al, 2004).
We can apply a zoning to develop
the policy of cave zone management by
establishing four zones from inside the
cave where the guano was deposited (as
the infected zone) to the cave entrance (as
the buffer zone) to area around the cave
(as control zone or surveillance zone) and
to area outside the cave (as free zone)
depends on the measurement of zoonotic
disease dispersion.

Bat guano collection training
Bat guano collection training must be
performed to promote human resource
development by raising health and safety
issues in discussion in with workers and
the persons related to bat guano collection
and promoting the awareness of disease
from guano harvesting (Suwannarong and
Schuler, 2016). Moreover, lesson learning
manual about the practice of gathering bat
guano, common pastures (Battelli, 2008)
and disease spread protection (Meslin and
Formenty, 2004) should also be produced
and distributed to this group of people.
Community knowledge and perceptions
of the risks associated with bats should
be provided to people who live or present
near the caves (Suwannarong and Schuler,
2016) to realize the importance of zoonotic
disease reduction and to make decisions
about management techniques that could
prevent this disease in guano-mining
communities (Woods, 2004).

Establishment of veterinary services
Veterinary services establishment
should be included in the policies to
develop appropriate procedures and
standards for safe and suitable guano
collection by performing the risk analysis,
disease outbreaks prevention and control
as well as epidemiological surveillance
(Fujita, 2004).
The prevention of disease outbreaks
should concentrate on notification of diseases,
health education and information,
diagnosis and therapy of human pathologies,
eradication and pasteurization that
can lead to the gradual decrease in the
number of diseases (Battelli, 2008). MiniSoutheast
Asian J Trop Med Public Health
336 Vol 49 No. 2 March 2018
mizing the transmission of microorganisms
from wild animals to humans must
be realized for human wellbeing and environmental
sustainability Public health
and environmental science perspectives
should be needed to elucidate how people
interact with bats couple with agricultural
view (Wood et al, 2012).
Epidemiological surveillance and suspected
disease outbreaks investigation. The epidemiological
surveillance is a continuous
recording method of population which
used to follow up the health situation
or the risk factors in time and space to
provide the appropriate actions (Romain,
2004). Population-based surveillance such
as fungal diseases surveillance, although
it is expensive and may be difficult to
conduct, it can provide accurate incidence
rates and better descriptive epidemiology
due to it can be used to define burden and
trends, to evaluate interference as well as
to detect new pathogens (Ellis et al, 2000).
Suspected disease outbreaks should
be investigated from hypotheses about
the cause and source of the outbreak
(Ellis et al, 2000) along with using laboratory
diagnostic capabilities (Hussein,
2004) and should create risk management
framework to deal with future outbreaks.

Exposure reduction policy
There are three solutions to solve the
problem of “How can we do to reduce H.
capsulatum exposure?”
A. Controlling airborne material when removing
bat guano from a cave. Excavation
process can result in aerosolized dusts
containing H. capsulatum spores and can
cause infections not only in persons on
work site, but also in other areas around.
The best way to prevent H. capsulatum
spores is to keep a distance from situations
where contaminated material can become
aerosolized and then be inhaled. The other
solution is water sprays or other dust
suppression techniques. Moreover, work
practices also help deplete the risks of infection,
for examples, wetting contaminated
material with water spray and collect it
in a plastic bag. For large accumulations
of bat manure, industrial vacuum bag
and truck-mounted or trailer-mounted
vacuum systems are recommended. During
windy periods, respiratory protection
such as air filters should be inspected for
the work site persons (Steven et al, 2004).
B. Wearing personal protective equipment.
Using personal protective equipment
is still necessary in case of work practices
and dust control have not been fully
evaluated. Wearing a NIOSH-approved
respirator (NIOSH = National Institute
for Occupational Safety and Health) and
other items during collection of bat manure
from an enclosed area such as cave
is to protect H. capsulatum exposure. In
addition, the types of respirator are available
with half-facepiece, full facepiece,
loose-fitting facepiece, hood and helmet.
The other personal protective equipment
that workers should wear are clothing
and shoe coverings that can reduce the
possibility of transferring H. capsulatum
spore dust from work site to other places,
wearing chemical-resistant gloves is
recommended when working in a sporecontaminated
area (Steven et al, 2004).
C. Using other method than the disinfectants.
Formaldehyde solution was the only
disinfectant that was used to disinfect H.
capsulatum contaminated soil and material
(Tosh et al, 1966; Tosh et al, 1967; Bartlett et
al, 1982). However, exposures to formaldehyde
can cause a variety of adverse health
effects. Thus, a number of EPA-registered
fungicidal products contain formaldehyde
is not registered for use as disinfectant. FurBat
Guano: Fertilizer or the Health Hazard?
Vol 49 No. 2 March 2018 337
thermore, there is no chemical that claimed
by EPA (Environmental Protection Agencies)
of being effective against H. capsulatum.
In this case, any material that tends
to be contaminated with H. capsulatum
should be properly and safely disposed or
decontaminated as well as not be moved
to other areas (Steven et al, 2004).
CONCLUSION
Bat guano deposit is another choice
of seeking phosphorus for use as fertilizer
in agricultural sector to produce
food in global scale, owing to its natural
availability and has high phosphorus
content. Management of health safety
and security of zoonotic diseases from
bat guano collection by developing the
policies such as cave zone management,
guano collection training, veterinary services
establishment as well as exposure
reduction can help this choice to be the
most sustainable way suits for the situation
that phosphorus from apatite rock
reserve is now lacking all over the world
and will finally deplete. Furthermore, the
integrated collaboration from all parties
such as research teams, government and
agencies should be made to manifest the
safety act, to avoid added time and cost
of treating disease and to promote safe
guano collection that give tremendous
benefits of using guano as fertilizer along
with answer the question of traceability
and credibility of guano harvest, otherwise
inadequate phosphorus source or
ineffective using guano as fertilizer will
be occurred.
REFERENCES
Ajello L, Weeks RJ. Soil decontamination and
other control measures. In: DiSalvo AF, ed.
Occupational mycoses. Philadelphia: Lea
and Febiger, 1983: 229-38.
Bartlett PC, Weeks RJ, Ajello L. Decontamination
of Histoplasma capsulatum-infested
bird roost in Illinois. Arch Environ Health
1982; 37: 221-3.
Battelli G. Zoonoses as occupational diseases.
Vet Ital 2008; 44: 601-9.
Buliga C. Guano exploitation in Madagascar.
Washington, DC: SIT Graduate Institute/
SIT Study Abroad, 2010. [Cited 2017 Jun
19]. Available from: URL: http://www.
digitalcollections.sit.edu/isp collection
Carreto-Binaghi LE, Damasceno LS, Pitangui
Nde S, et al. Could Histoplasma capsulatum
be related to healthcare-associated infections?.
Biomed Res Int 2015; 2015: 982429.
Chamany S, Mirza SA, Fleming JW, et al. A
large histoplasmosis outbreak among high
school students in Indiana, 2001. Pediatr
Infect Dis J 2004; 23: 909-14.
Deepe GS Jr. Chapter 254: Histoplasma capsulatum.
In: Mandell GL, Bennett JE, Dolin R,
eds. Principles and practices of infectious
diseases. 5th ed. Philadelphia: Churchill
Livingstone, 2000: 2718-33.
Edwards J, Abila R. A progressive zoning approach
to the control of foot and mouth
disease in Southeast Asia. The 11th International
Conference of The Association
of Institution for Tropical Veterinary
Medicine and 16th Veterinary Association
Malasia Congress. Sunway Pyramid Convention
Centre, Petaling Jaya: 102-5. 23-27
August 2004.
Ellis D, Marriott D, Hajjeh RA, Warnock D,
Meyer W, Barton R. Epidemiology: surveillance
of fungal infections. Med Mycol 2000;
38 (Suppl 1): 173-82.
Feachem RG, Bradley JB, Garelick H, Mara DD.
Sanitation and disease: health aspects of
excreta and wastewater management.
Washington DC: John Wiley & Sons (published
for the World Bank), 1983.
Field H. Bats and emerging zoonoses: henipaviruses
and SARS. Zoonoses Public Health
2009; 56: 278-84.
Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
Southeast Asian J Trop Med Public Health
338 Vol 49 No. 2 March 2018
Investigating the role of bats in emerging
zoonoses: balancing ecology, conservation
and public health interests. In: Newman
SH, Field HE, de Jong CE, Epstein JH,
eds. FAO animal production and health
manual. Rome: FAO, 2011; 12.
Fujita T. Zoning and regulatory for animal
disease control. The 11th International Conference
of The Association of Institution
for Tropical Veterinary Medicine and 16th
Veterinary Association Malasia Congress.
Petaling Jaya: Sunway Pyramid Convention
Centre, 23-27 August 2004.
Hayman DT, Emmerich P, Yu M, et al. Longterm
survival of an urban fruit bat seropositive
for Ebola and Lagos bat viruses.
PLOS One 2010; 5: e11978.
Heymann DL. Control of communicable diseases
manual. 18th ed. Washington, DC:
American Public Health Association,
2004: 273-5.
Hussein H. Managing recent issues in animal
trade. The 11th International Conference of
The Association of Institution for Tropical
Veterinary Medicine and 16th Veterinary
Association Malasia Congress. Petaling
Jaya: Sunway Pyramid Convention Centre,
23-27 August 2004.
Kamarudin MI, Abdul AM, Sharifah SH, et al.
Malaysian experience in handling the
threat of East Asian highly pathogenic
avian influenza outbreaks. The 11th International
Conference of The Association
of Institution for Tropical Veterinary
Medicine and 16th Veterinary Association
Malasia Congress. Petaling Jaya: Sunway
Pyramid Convention Centre, 23-27 August
2004.
Kamins AO, Rowcliffe JM, Ntiamoa-Baidu Y,
Cunningham AA, Wood JL, Restif O. Characteristics
and risk perceptions of Ghanaians
potentially exposed to bat-borne
zoonoses through bushmeat. Ecohealth
2015; 12: 104-20.
Ksiazek, TG, Erdman D, Goldsmith CS, et al. A
novel coronavirus associated with severe
acute respiratory syndrome. N Engl J Med
2003; 348: 1953-66.
Laima T. Zoonoses. Chiang Mai: CMU, 1988.
[Cited 2017 Oct 3]. Available from: http://
www.med.cmu.ac.th/research /animal/
animal/Zoonoses.doc
Leroy EM, Kumulungui B, Pourrut X, et al. Fruit
bats as reservoirs of Ebola virus. Nature
2005; 438: 575-6.
Leroy EM, Epelboin A, Mondonge V, et al. Human
Ebola outbreak resulting from direct
exposure to fruit bats in Luebo, Democratic
Republic of Congo. Vector Borne Zoonot Dis
2009; 9: 723-8.
Luby SP, Gurley ES, Hossain MJ. Transmission
of human infection with Nipah virus. Clin
Infect Dis 2009; 49: 1743-8.
Meslin FX, Formenty P. A Review of emerging
zoonoses and their public health implications:
a call for effective intersectoral
collaboration. The 11th International Conference
of The Association of Institution
for Tropical Veterinary Medicine and 16th
Veterinary Association Malasia Congress.
Petaling Jaya: Sunway Pyramid Convention
Centre, 23-27 August 2004.
Mitchell TG. Systemic mycoses. In: Joklik WK,
Willett HP, Amos DB, Wifert CM, eds.
Zinsser microbiology. 20th ed. Norwalk:
Appleton and Lange, 1992: 1091-112.
Murray, K, Selleck P, Hooper P, et al. A morbillivirus
that caused fatal disease in horses
and humans. Science 1995; 268: 94-7.
Nováková A. Microscopic fungi isolated from
the Domica Cave system (Slovak Karst
National Park, Slovakia). A review. Int J
Speleol 2009; 38: 71-82.
Poulson TL, Lavoie KH. The trophic basis of
subsurface ecosystems. In: Wilkins H,
Culver DC, Humphreys WF, eds. Subterranean
ecosystems. Amsterdam: Elsevier
Press, Ecosystems of the World, 2000: 231-
49.
Richard KBJ, Jenkins PAR. Bats as bushmeat
in Madagascar. Madag Conserv Dev 2008;
Bat Guano: Fertilizer or the Health Hazard?
Vol 49 No. 2 March 2018 339
3: 22-30.
Richards R, Brigida D, DiMiceli C, Gersh K,
Sribarra A, Iweins M. Guidelines for
minimizing the negative impact to bats
and other cave organisms from guano
harvesting: Ver. 1.0. (12 March 2014).
Gland: IUCN, 2014. [Cited 2017 May 16].
Available from: http://www.researchgate.
net/publication/ 303784027_IUCN_Guidelines_
for_Minimizing_the_Negative_Impact_
to_Bats_and_Other_Cave_Organisms_
from_Guano_Harvesting
Romain OK. Epizooties and animal health.
The 11th International Conference of The
Association of Institution for Tropical
Veterinary Medicine and 16th Veterinary
Association Malasia Congress. Petaling
Jaya: Sunway Pyramid Convention Centre,
23-27 August 2004.
Shetty S, Sreepada KS, Bhat R. Effect of bat
guano on the growth of Vigna radiata L:
Int J Sci Res 2013; 3: 1-8.
Smil V. Phosphorus in the environment: natural
flows and human interferences. Annu Rev
Energy Environ 2000; 25: 53-88.
Steven WL, Millie PS, Mitchell S, Rana AH.
Histoplasmosis protecting workers at risk.
Bethesda: Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention, Revised ed, December

[Cited 2017 Jul 25]. Available from:
http:// www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/2005-109/
pdfs/2005-109.pdf
Suwannarong K, Schuler S. Bat consumption
in Thailand. Infect Ecol Epidemiol 2016; 6:
29941.
Tosh FE, Weeks RJ, Pfeiffer FR, Hendricks SL,
Chin TDY. Chemical decontamination of
soil containing Histoplasma capsulatum. Am
J Epidemiol 1966; 83: 262-70.
Tosh FE, Weeks RJ, Pfeiffer FR, Hendricks SL,
Greer DL, Chin TDY. The use of formalin to
kill Histoplasma capsulatum at an epidemic
site. Am J Epidemiol 1967; 85: 259-65.
Towner JS. Pourrut X, Albariño CG, et al. Marburg
virus infection detected in a common
African bat. PLOS One 2007; 2: e76416.
Towner JS, Amman BR, Sealy TK, et al. Isolation
of genetically diverse Marburg viruses
from Egyptian fruit bats. PLOS Pathog
2009; 5: e1000536.
Vandžurova A, Piliš V, Bačkor P, et al. Microflora
of the bat guano. Folia Vet 2012; 56 (Suppl
II): 68-9.
Walsh TJ, Larone DH, Schell WA, Mitchell TG.
Histoplasma, blastomyces, coccidioides,
and other dimorphic fungi causing systemic
mycoses. Chapter 118. In: Murray
PR, ed. Manual of clinical microbiology. 8th
ed. Washington, DC: American Society for
Microbiology Press, 2003: 1781-97.
Walan P. Modeling of peak phosphorus: a
study of bottlenecks and implications for
future production. Uppsala: Department
of Earth Sciences, Uppsala University,