As the human population grows and produces more waste, engineers need more and more to look for safe and healthy ways to get human waste back into nature where it belongs, to protect the health of our children and their children.
Sludge has been treated for a fair number of years now, in particular since the Clean Water Act came out. Before that, a lot of sewage sludge was actually dumped straight into our water (or into the ocean). And industries thought nothing about dumping heavy metals and toxic waste with their other sewage waste. But now industrial companies are monitored to ensure they don’t dump toxic waste in with their sewage waste, and sewage waste is treated. Everything released from sewage treatment plants as safe-to-use is strictly regulated, and so is the land application of the biosolids.
The most viable use of biosolids is land applications. Most valuable for its organic matter, it can be used not only by farmers to improve their crops, but also by land rehabilitators who reclaim land damaged by mining.
Other uses involve further processing of the biosolids. Most biosolids are currently released as “cake”, however, this can be further processed into compost, or dried into pellets. These can then be marketed. Pellets can also be used to generate electricity. When used in this way by the waste water treatment plant, the plant can be self-sufficient in terms of energy required.
For more details on composting with biosolids, please read the following article "Why I love biosolids".
When none of these options are utilized, biosolids are dumped into landfills with the rest of our garbage.
What do you think should be done with biosolids?
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Friday, May 14, 2010
The value of applied manure
Manure used properly can save you a lot of money on fertilizer and can raise your profitability by as much as 15%. However, a study in Missouri found that many farmers were over applying and not utilizing the full benefits of the manure available. Over applying manure causes the crop to lose some of the benefits of the manure in the same way that over applying chemical fertilizers can adversely affect the crops.
When compared to chemical fertilizer, manure’s fertilizer content is not as readily available and concentrated to the crop. Therefore, to maximize the benefit of the manure
it is better to inject it, and the timing of the application is crucial to the planted crop’s ability to utilize the full benefit of the manure. Injecting and proper timing allows for the mineralization process of the nutrients, which is what makes the nutrients available for the plants to use. Since the different crops need the different nutrients at different times, the amount of manure applied and the timing of the application will vary with the field and the crop.
As part of your Nutrient Management System, accurate soil and manure analysis will help develop the full benefit of manure to the crop planted. Bartels Environmental Services has a full line of modern equipment to help you make the most of your manure. They will help you save money through proper management, by the use of their GPS metering and field mapping equipment.
Do you think that you could get more benefits from your manure application? Have you been disappointed with the results of your manure usage?
When compared to chemical fertilizer, manure’s fertilizer content is not as readily available and concentrated to the crop. Therefore, to maximize the benefit of the manure
it is better to inject it, and the timing of the application is crucial to the planted crop’s ability to utilize the full benefit of the manure. Injecting and proper timing allows for the mineralization process of the nutrients, which is what makes the nutrients available for the plants to use. Since the different crops need the different nutrients at different times, the amount of manure applied and the timing of the application will vary with the field and the crop.
As part of your Nutrient Management System, accurate soil and manure analysis will help develop the full benefit of manure to the crop planted. Bartels Environmental Services has a full line of modern equipment to help you make the most of your manure. They will help you save money through proper management, by the use of their GPS metering and field mapping equipment.
Do you think that you could get more benefits from your manure application? Have you been disappointed with the results of your manure usage?
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Introduction to Biosolids
Farm practices have changed dramatically over the last five to 10 years. The government is enforcing better nutrient management practices to protect the soil and water quality without giving up productivity for the farmer. At Bartels Environmental Services, we strongly believe in protecting our environment. We are committed to providing a service that will merge the use of biosolids and farm manures with the latest technologies such as GPS metering of inputs to the soil. This is beneficial because it allows the farmer to accurately know what is applied to the land. In turn, the farmer can effectively optimize the biosolids and farm manure nutrients and reduce the cost of fertilizers.
About Biosolids
What are biosolids?
Biosolids are domestic wastewater sludge that has been treated and tested to meet standards that allow it to legally be used as fertilizer. This process is regulated by the Nutrient Management Act, 2002 (NMA) and the Environmental Protection Act (EPA).
Use of Biosolids
The use of biosolids is not a new concept; it has been around for hundreds of years around the world. Spreading biosolids on agricultural land is very popular in many industrialized nations. In fact, in countries such as Germany and The Netherlands, nearly all biosolids are applied to agricultural land.
The Benefits of Biosolids
Through testing over many years by various countries, several benefits of biosolids have been identified. In the short term, they add plant essential nutrients (such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium), a wide variety of trace minerals, and a small amount of organic matter. These result in significant yield increases. A long-term benefit of biosolids is that they improve soil structure. This will help maximize your land potential.
About Biosolids
What are biosolids?
Biosolids are domestic wastewater sludge that has been treated and tested to meet standards that allow it to legally be used as fertilizer. This process is regulated by the Nutrient Management Act, 2002 (NMA) and the Environmental Protection Act (EPA).
Use of Biosolids
The use of biosolids is not a new concept; it has been around for hundreds of years around the world. Spreading biosolids on agricultural land is very popular in many industrialized nations. In fact, in countries such as Germany and The Netherlands, nearly all biosolids are applied to agricultural land.
The Benefits of Biosolids
Through testing over many years by various countries, several benefits of biosolids have been identified. In the short term, they add plant essential nutrients (such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium), a wide variety of trace minerals, and a small amount of organic matter. These result in significant yield increases. A long-term benefit of biosolids is that they improve soil structure. This will help maximize your land potential.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)