Disposal of sewage sludge to land

Number of samples within content ranges (mg kg dry weight) 

A recent revision of the rules governing the disposal of sewage sludge to the land in the UK has placed some restriction on the quantity of lead added to the land. The guideline is based upon the premises that lead is not readily taken up and translocated by plants, and hence elevated levels of lead in soil will have httle effect upon the content of the plants (normally about 3 mg kg dry weight), and secondly that lead does not produce toxic effects upon plant growth. 

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Table 1. Summary of complaints or problems relating to disposal of sewage sludge to land in the UK (1980 data/4)...

DOE/NWC (1981) Report of the sub-commit-tee on the disposal of sewage sludge to land. Standing Technical Committee Report No. 20. Department of the Environment, London. 

More than 5,000 tons of organotins were released, primarily to landfills, in the United States in 1976 (Laughlin and Linden 1985). Additional releases to soil may occur by disposal of fly ash from coal combustion or land application of sewage sludge. 

Production, Import/Export, Use, Release, and Disposal. Humans are at risk of exposure to trichloroethylene because of its widespread use and distribution in the environment. Production, import, and use of the chemical are known to be relatively high, but recent quantitative data were not available (HSDB 1994). Trichloroethylene is released to the atmosphere mainly through its use in vapor degreasing operations (EPA 1985e). Landfills can be a concentrated source of trichloroethylene on a local scale. It is also released to surface water and land in sewage sludges and industrial liquid or solid waste. Trichloroethylene is... 

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