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WIENER MITTEILUNGEN WASSER ABWASSER GEWÄSSER Sewage Sludge Disposal sustainable and/or reliable solutions Band 171 - Wien 2001 WIENER MITTEILUNGEN WASSER ABWASSER GEWÄSSER Band 171 Sewage Sludge Disposal sustainable and/or reliable solutions ÖWAV / EWA - Workshop- Wien 2001 Technische Universität Wien 10. - 11. September 2001 Herausgeber Prof. Dipl.Ing. Dr. H. Kroiß Technische Universität Wien Institut für Wassergüte und Abfallwirtschaft Veranstalter Österreichischer Wasser- und W Abfallwirtschaftsverband A Marc - Aurel - Straße 5 V 1010 Wien European Water Association Theodor-Heuss-Allee 17 53773 Hennef Germany Institut für Wassergüte und Abfallwirtschaft TU- Wien Karlsplatz 13 / 226 1040 Wien Institut für Wassergüte und Abfallwirtschaft Karlsplatz 13/226; 1040 Wien Tel: + 43 1 58801-22611 Fax: + 43 1 58801-22699 Mail: [email protected] Alle Rechte vorbehalten. Ohne Genehmigung der Herausgeber ist es nicht gestattet, das Buch oder Teile daraus zu veröffentlichen © Institut für Wassergüte und Abfallwirtschaft TU-Wien, 2001 Druck: Riegelnik 1080, Piaristengasse 19 ISSN 0279 - 5349 ISBN 3 - 85234 - 062 - 4 Contents Le Moux, J., Gazzo, A 1 - 10 Disposal and recycling routes for sewage sludge: Sociological acceptance in Europe Hahn, H. 11 - 20 Agricultural use of sewage sludge – a controversial issue Bode, H., Schmitt, N. 21 - 32 New Sludge disposal concept 2000 of the River Association Ruhrverband Brunner, P.H. 33 - 44 The role of sewage sludge in the context of the regional materials management Böhm, R. 45 - 60 The hygienic aspect of sludge application in agriculture Evans, T. 61 - 76 Marketing of sludge and quality assurance Borraz, O. 77 - 88 The socio-economic problem – how to co-ordinate the many different interests and players affected by sludge application in agriculture Piekema, P. 89 - 102 P recovery from sludge (in the context of P management) Leitzinger, C. 103 - 112 Sludge disposal of the city of Zurich (co-incineration, actual and future options) Klager, F., Kroiss, H., Tikovsky, F. 113 - 130 Raw sludge incineration in Vienna (3 Mio PE) and its implications on waste water treatment (20 years of full scale experience) Balmér, P. 131 - 142 Sludge treatment and disposal strategies in Sweden Jepsen, S.E.. 143 - 156 Sludge handling and disposal strategies in Denmark Schmidt, T. 157 - 166 Sludge disposal management in the context of regional waste management Pollak, M. 167 - 180 Soil protection aspects of sludge application in agriculture Kroiß, H. 181 - 184 Soil protection aspects of sludge application in agriculture Preface In Europe, but also in many other countries of the world the necessity of water protection by waste water treatment is commonly accepted today. One of the consequences of waste water treatment is the production of sewage sludge. Those responsible of fulfilling the legal requirements for waste water treatment have to find sludge disposal methods taking into account that sludge production cannot be avoided or stopped. Sludge treatment and disposal have to comply with the following prerequisites: S Sustainability (Health, resource and environmental protection aspects) S Reliability of disposal at any time (operational aspect) S Economical feasibility (cost minimisation aspects) S Public acceptance (agriculture, trade, retailers, consumers, etc.) The EU-commission is on the way to develop a new guideline for agricultural use of sewage sludge in order to enhance the idea of recycling of the valuable compounds and to minimise the risk for the society and the environment. The goal of the Workshop held in Vienna, organised in co-operation of the Austrian Water and Waste Management Association and the European Water Association was to bring together the expertise of European professionals coming from different disciplines and different countries involved in sludge disposal problems in order to discuss feasible solutions. This booklet contains the material presented at this workshop together with a conclusion. We hope that this publication can contribute to spread knowledge and experience to a broad range of professionals in order to improve the discussion on solutions of a rather complex problem which finds public awareness mainly in the case of negative aspects or impacts. It seems that the socio-economic and political aspects need as much attention as the technological and organisational ones. Vienna, November 2001 Helmut Kroiss 1 Wiener Mitteilungen (2001) Band 171, 1-10 Copyright © 2001; Institut für Wassergüte / TU-Wien Disposal and recycling routes for sewage sludge: Sociological acceptance in Europe J. Le Moux and A. Gazzo Andersen - Environment Risk Consulting The debate on sludge recycling and disposal has recently been the target of growing interest. This is due to the fact that some concern was expressed about the potential risks of the agricultural use of sludge for health and the environment as early as the beginning of the 1990s. Therefore, most of the debate on sludge has focused on this route (past and present debate on disposal routes is not focused on sludge but relates to waste in general). The debate on the use of sludge in agriculture originated mainly in Northern Europe at the beginning of the 1990s, before gaining in intensity from 1995 onwards. Analysing the context of this period is crucial to understanding the various stakeholders' attitudes, motivations and constraints concerning the use of sludge. In particular, the recent health "scares" related to GMOs (Genetically Modified Organisms), dioxins, and BSE (Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy, that is, "mad cow disease") have cast doubts on the safety of the food products on the markets and on the ability of existing regulations and controls to minimise human exposure to potential risks. The concern expressed about food safety is also related to growing pressure on the agricultural sector, which in certain countries is considered by consumer associations or nature protection associations as being too focused on intensive production and not sufficiently concerned about the impact of its activities on health and on the environment. The above holds true for most European countries, however, certain countries are under considerable pressure from both sewage sludge, i.e. a high rate of production per inhabitant, and from other fertilising materials, in terms of nitrogen and phosphate content. This is one reason why the debate has not been 2 Sewage Sludge Disposal – Sustainable and/or reliable solutions EWA - Workshop 2001, Vienna the same in all countries and has been most heated in the Netherlands, Flanders and Scandinavian countries. Analysis by country Past and current events show that it is possible to divide countries up into the following groups: S In the Netherlands and Flanders, the debate on the use of sludge in agriculture is over, as the regulatory requirements have prevented almost all use of sewage sludge in agriculture since 1991 in the Netherlands and 1999 in Flanders. S In countries such as Denmark and the United Kingdom, the debate is now mostly over. In Denmark, new regulations on the use of sludge in agriculture (Statutory Order no. 49 of January 20, 2000 on the Application of Waste Products for Agricultural Purposes) have played a large part in ending the debate, as they are considered sufficiently strict to reduce risks to an acceptable level. In the United Kingdom, the debate on sludge recycling was heated until an agreement was reached in September 1998 between Water UK, representing the 14 UK water and sewage operators, and the British Retail Consortium (BRC), representing the major retailers. In addition, farmers' associations support the agricultural use of sludge, both for economic and for agronomic reasons. S The cases of Germany and Sweden are special. In Sweden, a voluntary agreement was signed in 1994 between the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA), the Swedish Federation of Farmers (LRF) and the Swedish Water and Waste Water Association (VAV) concerning quality assurances relating to the use of sludge in agriculture. However, in October 1999 the LRF recommended that their members stop using sludge because of concerns about the quality of sludge. In Germany, opinion has recently swung in favour of agricultural land spreading, mainly because this practice is considered economically viable and it is considered that the potential risks are sufficiently reduced by the existing legislation. However, political developments in 2001 have considerably heated the debate, which is quite J. Le Moux and A. Gazzo 3 Disposal and recycling routes for sewage sludge: Sociological acceptance in Europe high at present as some Länder support an increase of regulatory constraints on sludge landspreading. S In Austria, France and Walloon, a national (or regional) agreement is currently under negotiation between the different parties, and hence the debate is heated. The situation is particularly tense in France where the farmers' unions supported, until recently, the development of the agricultural recycling of sewage sludge, on the condition that additional quality controls and an insurance fund system were set up. The situation has now changed, as farmers' unions (the FNSEA and CDJA) have asked for a ban on the use of sewage sludge, officially because the current methods used are not considered to be sufficient to address the risks related to the agricultural recycling of sludge. S In Finland and Luxembourg, the farming community is generally hostile towards the use of sludge for land spreading, mainly because