Case study: Fertilizing agricultural land with sewage sludge
Feasibility Study on Composting and Using Biosolids for Agricultural Purposes in the City of Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu
WASTE
The City of St-Jean-sur-Richelieu studied the feasibility of using municipal sewage sludge as agricultural fertilizer.
Every year, the municipal wastewater treatment plant trucks 11,000 tonnes of biosolids to a landfill more than 100 kilometres away. After field tests, the study team gave a thumbs-up to spreading the sludge on land. The study showed that an open-air composting site would have to be built to treat the biosolids during winter and rainy periods. Ideally, the bulking agent added to the sludge would be organic waste from household collection.
Spreading municipal biosolids on agricultural lands is a solution that has financial benefits for farmers and the municipality, and is good for the environment.
Results
| Environmental | Economic | Social |
|---|---|---|
|
|
|
Challenges
- Devising a composting and/or storage scenario for winter, when biosolids cannot be transported directly to farmers' fields.
- Overcoming the public's discomfort with the idea of spreading sewage sludge on land.
Lessons learned
- During winter, composting is preferable to simple storage because it brings biosolids to maturity sooner and improves their physical characteristics.
- Field tests were important in showing that the project would not have negative impacts like unpleasant odours.
- The proximity of vast agricultural areas is a big part of what made this project economical.
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