Biosolids are is basically treated sewage water that is converted to fertilizer for agricultural use. Most of the food we eat probably has been treated with biosolids. Whether you like it or not biosolids are apart of our daily lives and we should have more knowledge about what goes on with our food.
How are biosolids produced and are they safe to use?
As briefly discussed in the previous paragraph biosolids is basically treated sludge from the municipal sewage system. Once the waste water reaches the sewage plant the sludge is left to settle to the bottom of a tank. When most or all of the sludge has settled, a process of disinfection and treatment begins to convert sludge into biosolids. There are several process that sludge has to go through to make sure that harmful organic materials are eliminated and that they do not pose a threat to agriculture when being used. If you think about the big picture, the waste that is created from the food we eat, actually goes back into the food that we're about to eat. Therefore if it wasn't safe, biosolids wouldn't play such a huge roll in our food chain.
What are the major benefits and drawbacks of biosolids?
There are many environmental and economical benefits of using biosolids instead of of fertilizers. Let's talk about the environmental benefits of biosolids, bioslolids are much more environmentally friendly than fertilizers. These fertilizers that are used in mass quantities are made of harmful chemicals that may seep into the drinking water supply. The point of fertilizers is to provide the soil with nitrogen so that agriculture is able to grow quickly. But biosolids do the same thing without the harmful chemicals, just like fertilizer biosolids have nitrogen to. Also biosolids are more natural and easier for plants to absorb since its usually just manure. Like fertilizers if biosolids are not treated or used properly it can seep into the drinking supply, especially if residents take water from a well. As for the economical benefits, fertilizers cost much more to produce than biosolids. Not to mention producing biosolids are a form of recycling which creates job in the environmental sector. Also Ontario farmers do not have to pay for biosolids because they are provided by the municipal sewage plant. This can save $67 an acre if a farmer uses commercial nitrogen fertilzers and $100 of commercial phosphorus is used. With all the environmental and economical benefits there is no reason why not to use biosolids.
Are biosolids a nuisance when it comes to smell?
After biosolids have been processed and treated it does not smell. From past experience of using manure I found that it didn’t smell and it was just like normal soil. It looks and feels like top soil that you would use. Biosolids are an amazing alternative to top soil because manure is much more nutritious for plants to grow off of.
I think that biosolids are great alternatives to fertilizers and i think everyone should use them because they don't smell and its cheap! Not to mention they are perfectly safe for use and with the strict regulations in North America biosolids concerns should not be raised. Biosolids are in our food and there have never been reported incidents in Canada where biosolids have been directly involved with cases of contamination.
I commented on:
Angela Sweeney
Natasha Richichi-Fried
Sources:
"Biosolids - Agricultural Land Application - Ministry of the Environment." Ministry of the Environment / Ministère De L'Environnement. Web. 09 June 2011. .
"City of Hamilton." Hamilton. Web. 9 June 2011. .
"City of Toronto: Biosolids." City of Toronto. Web. 9 June 2011. .
"CWWA - FAQ - Biosolids." CWWA/ACEPU. Web. 09 June 2011. .
"Sludge, Sludge Treatment, Sludge Disposal, Sewage, Australian New Zealand Biosolids." Australian and New Zealand Biosolids Partnership. Web. 09 June 2011. .
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