Newswise — June 1, 2016 – The direct source of biosolids isn’t pretty. It’s processed human waste collected by the wastewater treatment plants. But, the Soil Science Society of America (SSSA) June 1 Soils Matter blog post explains that biosolids are actually one of the most scientifically studied products for use in agriculture and home gardens. And they are being used to fix industrial sites – and used productively in home gardens as well!
“Tacoma, Washington, was one of the leading cities in the use of biosolids,” says Lakhwinder Hundal. “The city’s product, Tagro, is classified as Class A – meaning ‘exceptional quality.’ Residents use it in their gardens with great success.”
Hundal is a soil scientist with the city of Chicago’s Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRDGC).
A key advantage to biosolids is their microbes. “Biosolids are teeming with microbial life,” says Hundal. “Healthy soils can have up to a billion soil microbes in one tablespoon of the soil. Because biosolids are generated from biological process, they are full of these beneficial microbes. Soil microbes help plants get the nutrients they need. And when worked into the dredged sediment of the Illinois River, biosolids helped us remediate the former US Steel industrial site in Chicago.”
To read the entire blog post, visit http://www.soilsmatter.wordpress.com.
Follow SSSA on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/SSSA.soils, Twitter at SSSA_Soils. SSSA has soils information on www.soils.org/discover-soils, for teachers at www.soils4teachers.org, and for students through 12th grade, www.soils4kids.org.
The Soil Science Society of America (SSSA) is a progressive international scientific society that fosters the transfer of knowledge and practices to sustain global soils. Based in Madison, WI, and founded in 1936, SSSA is the professional home for 6,000+ members and 1,000+ certified professionals dedicated to advancing the field of soil science. The Society provides information about soils in relation to crop production, environmental quality, ecosystem sustainability, bioremediation, waste management, recycling, and wise land use.
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