WeCare Organics
9293 Bonta Bridge Road, Jordan, New York, United States

Biosolids ("treated sludge") are every municipality's management issue. Essentially, biosolids are the residual solids that are filtered, treated and screened after our wastewaters have made their way "down the drain," so to speak, to a wastewater treatment plant. For every municipality, the question becomes, "What do we do with them?"

To the uneducated, recycling biosolids as a soil amendment may pose a risk to human health and the environment. However, thanks to Federal regulations (40 CFR Part 503) governing biosolids management nationally, the risks of biosolids recycling, or beneficial use, have been minimized and/or eliminated. Strict compliance with these regulations is the hallmark of every company within the WeCare "family of companies."

Can we rely on the government's assessment of risk? The answer is yes, as concentrations of chemicals, dioxins, heavy metals and pathogens in recycled biosolids are at or below safe levels today, thanks largely to the pre-treatment of industrial wastes, the biosolids stabilization processes employed today, and the current regulations that govern both these operations and the management of final products.

At the heart of safety in biosolids management today is Federal regulations, 40 CFR Part 503. The scientific basis and risk assessment that is the foundation of this mandate took nine years to develop, during which there were many rounds of review and deliberation of the science and policies of the rule, by stakeholders from across the country. After issuance of the rule, there was a three-year review by the National Research Council of the National Academy of Science, whose findings reaffirmed the soundness of its science and risk assessment, relative to food-crop production on biosolids-amended land.

WeCare Organics markets a variety of biosolids-based products, all of which are verified and certified daily in tests, administered in strict accordance with 503 regulations.

The benefits are many. Biosolids that would otherwise go to a landfill are now recycled for beneficial use and marketed to growers, enriching their soils and increasing their yields at a fraction of the cost of alternative chemical amendments, while municipalities hold down waste management costs, which ultimately affect the taxpayer.

In short, Biosolids recycling is safe, beneficial use and a "win-win" for all.