Dataset on physico-chemical characteristics of Exogenous Organic Matters (EOMs) gathered from various European countries

Many activities generate organic wastes, including urban activities (e.g., biowaste, sewage sludge), industry (e.g. vinasse) and agriculture (e.g., livestock manure, crop residues). Exogenous Organic Matters (EOMs) are secondary raw materials, i.e., wastes and residues from agriculture, municipalities or industry, which are either used as such or further processed with different technologies. The large variability in the raw materials and production technologies increases the diversity of EOM characteristics, which in turn affect their efficacy when applied to soils. The datapaper presents the database “Physico-chemical characteristics of Exogenous Organic Matters (EOMs)” which is available in the Zenodo repository (https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.13969793). The database is a non-relational database in column format established in the framework of the EJP SOIL EOM4SOIL project, which aimed at establishing a database on EOM’s characteristics. The database gathered EOM characteristics collected in national databases and surveys from 6 European countries, and completed by data published in scientific articles. It describes physico-chemical characteristics of 126 types of EOMs encompassing urban, industrial and agricultural origins (e.g. urine, biowastes, sewage sludge, farmyard manures) and 91 characteristics (e.g. major elements, trace metals, emerging organic contaminants, pathogens, potentially mineralised C and N). There is an average of about 20 variables collected per type of EOM. Preliminary description of the EOM characteristics database is proposed in the present datapaper using descriptive statistics. The characteristics of the 126 types of EOMs provide valuable insights that can help farmers, policymakers, and agricultural consultants to optimize the use of these materials in fertilization and soil amendment practices. This knowledge is essential for better management of EOM application practices by the farmers in order to increase soil carbon stocks and reduce the reliance on mineral fertilizers.