National Manual of Good Practice for Biosolids Last Updated June 2011 View the Document Control Log for a Summary of Revisions NATIONAL MANUAL OF GOOD PRACTICE FOR BIOSOLIDS Table of Contents Introduction Acknowledgements 1 Public Acceptance 1.1 Sharing Public Perception 1.1.1 Environmental Benefits 1.1.2 Community Benefits 1.2 Analyzing Operations 1.3 Dealing with Odors 1.4 Developing Effective Communication 1.4.1 Communication Approaches: Proactive Reactive 1.4.2 Communication Tools 1.5 Environmental Management System Connections 1.6 Message Development 1.6.1 Risk Communications 1.6.2 Information Examples with Land Application 1.6.3 Presenting Messages Effectively 1.6.4 Developing Outreach 1.7 Maintaining Support 2 Federal and State Regulations 2.1 Federal Regulations 2.1.1 History and Background 2.1.2 Standards for the use or Disposal of Biosolids 2.2 General Requirements – 40CFR Part 503.12 2.2.1 Land Application 2.2.2 Surface Disposal 2.2.3 Incineration 2.3 Risk Assessment 2.4 Biosolids Quality Information 2.5 Proposed Dioxin Standards 2.6 State Regulations: Who’s In Charge? 2.7 Local Government Regulations 3 Wastewater Treatment Overview 3.1 Pretreatment and Pollution Prevention Programs 3.2 Liquid Stream Impact on Solids Management 3.3 Solids Generation 3.3.1 Primary Solids Generation 3.3.2 Secondary Solids Generation 3.3.3 Tertiary Treatment and Solids Generation 3.3.4 Impact of Sidestreams on Solids Generation 3.3.5 Solids Generation for Lagoon Systems Table of Contents Page 1 NATIONAL MANUAL OF GOOD PRACTICE FOR BIOSOLIDS 3.4 Septage Handling at a Wastewater Treatment Facility 3.4.1 Characteristics of Septage 3.4.2 Incorporation with the Liquid Stream 3.4.3 Septage Treatment and the Solids Process Stream 4 Solids Stabilization Systems 4.1 Stabilization Considerations 4.2 Anaerobic Digestion Systems 4.2.1 Critical Control Points / Operational Controls 4.3 Aerobic Digestion Systems 4.3.1 Critical Control Points / Operational Controls 4.3.2 Process Variations 4.4 Alkaline Treatment Systems 4.4.1 Critical Control Points / Operational Controls 4.5 Composting Systems 4.5.1 Critical Control Points / Operational Controls 4.6 Air Drying Systems 4.6.1 Two Summer Method 4.6.2 Rapid Drying Method 4.7 Thermal Drying Systems 4.7.1 Direct Dryer 4.7.2 Dryer Selection 4.7.3 Critical Control Points / Operational Controls 5 Solids Thickening and Dewatering Systems 5.1 Solids Thickening 5.1.1 Gravity Thickeners 5.1.2 Gravity Belt Thickeners 5.1.3 Dissolved Air Flotation Thickeners 5.1.4 Rotary Drum Thickeners 5.1.5 Centrifuge Thickeners 5.2 Solids Dewatering 5.2.1 Belt Filter Press Dewatering 5.2.2 Centrifuge Dewatering 5.2.3 Recessed Chamber Press Dewatering 5.2.4 Vacuum Filtration 5.2.5 Drying Beds 6 Odor Control 6.1 Odor Controls 6.2 Ventilation Rates 6.3 Odor Treatment Technologies Methods 7 Transportation 7.1 Critical Control Points / Operational Controls 7.2 Transport Method Table of Contents Page 2 NATIONAL MANUAL OF GOOD PRACTICE FOR BIOSOLIDS 7.3 Other Transport Methods 7.4 Spill Prevention 8 Agricultural Land Application 8.1 Biosolids Characteristics 8.2 Land Area Requirements 8.3 Site Selection 8.3.1 Preliminary Evaluation 8.3.2 Soil Properties 8.3.3 Buffer Zones 8.3.4 Conservation Planning 8.3.5 Nutrient Assessment 8.3.6 Access to the Farm 8.3.7 Distance to neighbors 8.4 Permitting Sites 8.5 Field Operations 8.5.1 Scheduling 8.5.2 Determining Application Rates 8.5.3 Field Operation Checklist 8.6 Managing Operations 8.6.1 Biosolids Management Plan 8.6.2 Plan to be a Good Neighbor 8.6.3 Coordinate Operations with the Farmer 8.6.4 Identify Buffer Zones and Restricted Areas 8.6.5 Managing Areas for Staging, Storage or Stockpiling 8.6.6 Site Application Equipment 8.6.7 Equipment Calibration 8.6.8 Recording Field Applications 8.6.9 Scheduling Applications 8.6.10 Housekeeping - Good Neighbor Policies 8.6.11 Site Restrictions and Public Access 8.7 Monitoring 8.7.1 Monitoring Frequency 8.7.2 Measuring Biosolids Characteristics 8.7.3 Sample Collection 8.8 Record Keeping and Reporting 9 Non-Agricultural Uses 9.1 Critical Control Points / Operational Controls 9.1.1 Effects of Organic Matter from Biosolids on Soil Properties 9.2 Reclamation Sites 9.2.1 Regulatory Considerations 9.2.2 Environmental Considerations 9.2.3 Design and Operational Considerations 9.2.4 Factors Affecting Success 9.3 Silviculture (Forestry) Application Table of Contents Page 3 NATIONAL MANUAL OF GOOD PRACTICE FOR BIOSOLIDS 9.3.1 Application to Forested Sites 9.3.2 Physical Features to be Evaluated 9.3.3 Application to Cleared Sites 9.3.4 Application to Young Forests 9.4 Other Non-Agricultural Uses of Biosolids 10 Non-Restricted Distribution 10.1 Critical Control Points / Operational Controls 10.2 Regulatory Requirements 10.3 Product Quality 10.3.1 General Product Quality Issues 10.3.2 Compost Product Quality 10.3.3 Heat Drying/Pelletization Product Quality 10.3.4 Alkaline Stabilization Product Quality 10.4 Wastewater/solids Treatment 10.5 Meeting Consumer Needs 10.6 Maintaining Product Outlets 10.7 Market Development 10.7.1 Demonstrating Product Potential 10.7.2 Expanding and Maintaining Markets 10.7.3 Exploring Market Options 11 Odor Control and Aesthetics in Land Application Programs 11.1 Liquid Stream Treatment 11.1.1 Influent Screening 11.1.2 Grinding 11.1.3 Grit Removal 11.2 Biosolid Treatment 11.2.1 Biological Treatment 11.2.2 Chemical Treatment 11.3 Transportation 11.4 Storage 11.5 Buffers 11.6 Operating Practices 11.7 Community Relations 12 Storage 12.1 Critical Control Points / Operational Controls 12.2 Odor Potential During and as a Result of Storage 12.3 Volume of Biosolids to Store 12.4 Solids Content of Biosolids to be Stored 12.5 Biosolids Stability 12.6 Recommended Management Practices 13 Biosolids Nutrient Management/Calculating Agronomic Rate of Application 13.1 Critical Control Points / Operational Controls Table of Contents Page 4 NATIONAL MANUAL OF GOOD PRACTICE FOR BIOSOLIDS 13.2 What is Nutrient Management? 13.3 Nutrient Management Planning and Biosolids 13.4 Biosolids and Phosphorus 13.5 Components of a Biosolids Nutrient Management Plan 13.6 Fundamental Terms and Concepts 13.7 Determining Crop Nitrogen Removal 13.8 Biosolids Plant Available Nitrogen 13.9 Crop N Contributions from Conventional Fertilizers 13.10 Crop N Contributions from Previous Legume Crops 13.11 Crop N Contributions from Manures and Other Amendments 13.12 Determining the Biosolids Agronomic Rate 13.13 Step-by-Step Agronomic Rate Calculation 14 Environmental Considerations 14.1 Critical Control Points / Critical Control Points 14.2 Possible Fates of Land-Applied Biosolids Constituents 14.3 Nutrients in Biosolids-Amended Soils 14.3.1 Soil Fertility 14.3.2 Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium 14.4 Trace Elements in Biosolids-Amended Soils 14.4.1 Trace Element Transformation Processes 14.4.2 Soil-Plant Relationships 15 Biosolids Incineration Systems 15.1 Multiple Hearth Furnace 15.2 Fluidized Bed Incinerator 15.3 Critical Control Points / Operational Controls 16 Incineration System Optimization 16.1 Critical Control Points / Operational Controls 16.2 General Controls 16.2.1 Operator Training 16.2.2 Record Keeping and Reporting 16.2.3 Feed Characteristics 16.2.4 Feed Rate 16.3 MHF Controls 16.3.1 Air Entry Rate 16.3.2 Hearth and Breech Temperature 16.3.3 Shaft Rotational Speed 16.3.4 Control Logic 16.4 FBI Controls 16.4.1 Air Flow 16.4.2 Bed Material and Bed Depth 16.4.3 Bed and Freeboard Temperature 16.4.4 Emergency Controls 16.4.5 Troubleshooting Table of Contents Page 5 NATIONAL MANUAL OF GOOD PRACTICE FOR BIOSOLIDS 17 Incineration Emissions 17.1 Regulatory Summary 17.1.1 Risk-Specific Concentrations for Arsenic, Cadmium, Chromium and Nickel 17.1.2 NAAQS for Lead 17.1.3 Beryllium and Mercury 17.1.4 Total Hydrocarbons and Carbon Monoxide 17.1.5 Proposed Regulatory Changes 17.2 Critical Control Points / Operational Controls 17.3 Incinerator System Selection and Design 17.4 Air Pollution Control Device System Optimization 17.5 Instrumentation Operation and Maintenance 17.6 Particulate Emission Controls 17.6.1 Cyclone Separator 17.6.2 Spray Chamber 17.6.3 Venturi/Impingement Tray Scrubber 17.6.4 Venturi Scrubber 17.6.5 Wet Electrostatic Precipitator 17.7 Organics Emission Controls 17.7.1 Internal Afterburner 17.7.2 Conventional – External Afterburner 17.7.3 Side Flue Afterburner 17.7.4 Side Exit Afterburner 17.7.5 Post Scrubber Afterburner 17.7.6 Regenerative Thermal Oxidizers 17.7.7 Flue Gas Recirculation 17.8 Dispersion Characteristics 17.9 Stack Exhaust Plumes 17.10 Record Keeping and Reporting 18 Ash Management 18.1 Critical Control Points / Operational Controls 18.2 Quantity of Ash 18.3 Ash Collection 18.3.1 Ash Generation and Collection in a MHF 18.3.2 Ash Generation and Collection in a FBI 18.4 Chemical Characteristics of Ash 18.5 Ash Disposal 18.6 Beneficial Use of Ash 18.6.1 Land Application 18.6.2 Structural Additive to Building Materials 19 Biosolids Management at Disposal Facilities 19.1 Critical Control Points / Operational Controls 19.2 Biosolids Management at Municipal Solid Waste Landfill Table of Contents Page 6 NATIONAL MANUAL OF GOOD PRACTICE FOR BIOSOLIDS 19.3 Biosolids Use in the Production of Cover Material 19.4 Biosolids Disposal at Dedicated Facilities 19.5 Biosolids Management Regulations Impacting Surface Disposal and Landfilling 19.6 Biosolids Solids Concentration 19.7 Transportation 19.8 Material Handling 19.9 On-Site Storage 19.10 Odor Control 20 Economic Considerations 20.1 Introduction 20.2 Components of an Effective Biosolids Program 20.3 Setting