Sludge as pasture fertilizer

[Dave]

Biosolids are a perfectly good source of nutrients for the plants. I have never used it but I have fed lots of hay that was fertilized with it. I have seen the lab tests on the biosolids, the soil, and the hay that was grown using it. I would without a doubt use it but I am a little too far from the treatment plant to make it pencel.

 

[skyhightree1]

I posted a question a year or 3 ago about using human waste as fertilizer.
My understanding is it should be treated and neutralized before spraying or putting down.
Just putting down in raw form ain't right. Or legal.
Now I wouldn't put down even treated human waste or environsoil as its called here. I'd rather use other more expensive options.

same here....

Maybe the price of beans will stay high just for you. ;-)

lol good one texas...

I am skeptical about that stuff because just like the medicines that you see on the tv that say if you had a problem with this medicine you may be entitled to money... I personally don't think this stuff has been used long enough for scientist to really say if there is a bad side effect to it. I know im probably worrying too much and probably too skeptical but thats just how I feel. If I can't afford to use regular fertilizer I will probably just stop farming.

 

[dun]

I personally don't think this stuff has been used long enough for scientist to really say if there is a bad side effect to it.

It was being used when I got back from Nam, how long does it take to be long enough?

 

[agmantoo]

I have a farm that is split by the county line. The west side approached me about their incorporating sludge on my farm. They came out to my home with all the sludge lab results and their acceptable compliance records with the EPA forms. According to the information I could apply the product for more than 900 years and still be in the acceptable level for all the EPA limitations for trace elements. A problem surfaced when the county to the east side of my place would not permit me to bring sludge from one municipality, the west side, to the east side without me having to pay a fee on a per acre basis. The municipality to the west was going to maintain my PH at the proper level on the entire farm for free. There were 3 methods of application, incorporation via tractor and disc, injected below the surface and broadcast and those methods would be used based on weather. All the equipment to be used was first class in the photos they displayed. With the county to the east issues I did not proceed. PS...I would be allowed to only grow pasture, hay, grains and no directly consumed vegetables/produce.

 

[novatech]

I personally don't think this stuff has been used long enough for scientist to really say if there is a bad side effect to it.

It was being used when I got back from Nam, how long does it take to be long enough?

It was being used way before that. When I was a kid in the 50's mom took us to the treatment plant and we filled feed sacks full to use in the garden and yard. About mid summer we had a good crop of cherry tomatoes that went well on salads or just a little salt.

 

[Anonymous]

Nova tech and dun, this was before the time where everyone flushed prescription drugs down toilets on public sewer systems.
There are real issues where prescription drug residue is ending up in reservoirs that they discovered via testing.
Now, thinking pynchon sewer system and not a private septic municipality, if those drug residues are showing up in reservoirs where tested water is tested? How do you think the direct sludge holds up.?
I don't know because I have found any testing of the treated sludge for prescription drug residue.
But make me think I don't want it

 

[JSCATTLE]

Not to offend anyone but if my neighbor tried to tell me what I can put on my ground I'd have done more than just walk off . I pay the taxes jmo...

 

[skyhightree1]

Not to offend anyone but if my neighbor tried to tell me what I can put on my ground I'd have done more than just walk off . I pay the taxes jmo...

I wasn't telling him what to do with his land he told me what he was doing and what I thought about it I told him I wouldn't is all. I can't tell anyone what to do on there own land. His direct neighbors beside him told him not to be doing that. I live down the road. One neighbor called me this evening that I rent some crop land from him and told me he called the epa and other county officials to come check him out.

 

[Isomade]

Not to offend anyone but if my neighbor tried to tell me what I can put on my ground I'd have done more than just walk off . I pay the taxes jmo...

I wasn't telling him what to do with his land he told me what he was doing and what I thought about it I told him I wouldn't is all. I can't tell anyone what to do on there own land. His direct neighbors beside him told him not to be doing that. I live down the road. One neighbor called me this evening that I rent some crop land from him and told me he called the epa and other county officials to come check him out.

:roll: :roll: :roll: I can remember the days when folks minded their own business. It won't be long before there is a government employee stationed at every home to make sure we wipe good. I'd use it if it was cost effective and I could get it. Poop is poop, next it's going to be illegal to leave cow shyt in the pasture. :cowboy:

 

[skyhightree1]

Trust me I don't want government in my business at all but someone called the epa on me because I let my cattle go in my man made pond.. which prompted many epa visits after that. I wouldn't have called on him not my business.

 

[Bigfoot]

I would be perfectly fine with using it. Infact, this has me thinking about looking into using it. Converting my fertilizer bill into disposable personal income sounds like a good idea. I might not tell the misses what's going on, on both the sludge and the savings.

 

[novatech]

Nova tech and dun, this was before the time where everyone flushed prescription drugs down toilets on public sewer systems.
There are real issues where prescription drug residue is ending up in reservoirs that they discovered via testing.
Now, thinking pynchon sewer system and not a private septic municipality, if those drug residues are showing up in reservoirs where tested water is tested? How do you think the direct sludge holds up.?
I don't know because I have found any testing of the treated sludge for prescription drug residue.
But make me think I don't want it

Just to let you know we had prescription drugs back in those days too, some of which have been taken off the market. The difference is that we did not have people testing how many parts per trillion of some drug were going to end up somewhere else.
The sewage treatment plants use tremendous amounts of water. Where do you think the waste water goes? It goes back into rivers and streams and ends up in the ocean. It is all treated with chlorine but that does not get rid of the drugs or any other chemicals for that matter.
When one considers the dilution rate of drugs by the time it gets to a pasture and goes through a cow and then finally consumed by people it is absolutely silly to have any concern over it.

 

[1wlimo]

:roll: :roll: :roll: I can remember the days when folks minded their own business. It won't be long before there is a government employee stationed at every home to make sure we wipe good. I'd use it if it was cost effective and I could get it. Poop is poop, next it's going to be illegal to leave cow shyt in the pasture. :cowboy:[/quote]

This is not so far away, there are restrictions in Europe now. Not just restrictions in the amount of manure you can apply but also in the number of animals you can graze per forage acre.

 

[pdfangus]

drug residues are a much bigger issue in the water portion of recycled materials than they are in the solids. Most drugs are water soluble.
hormones from birth control and menopause treatment is one of the major concerns because useage is so prevalent.

 

[Anonymous]

Here's an article that even includes cattle studies
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2008-03-10-drugs-tap-water_N.htm

 

[plumber_greg]

A bunch of us had a company called Prime Tanning out of Maine spread sludge from animal hides of our farms. Erin Brokwitch, the woman that is a envoroment activist, filed suit of our behalf, cuz' she determined that it was killing us and we were too backward to realize it and she was gonna' take care of the big bad company doing this to us. All she accomplished was stopping the company from giving away free fertilizer. I laughed when at a meeting with her one old farmer raised his hand and said," Don't really care if it's killing me or not, I just want to know when I can get some more."
Property values crumbled for a while, she got her name in the paper, broke the company, settled out of court cuz' there was only one company on the sue list not bankrupt, farmers got nothing, lawyers and her got lots of money.
Everyone forgot about it and things settled down, we just don't get free fertlizer.
I'd use whatever sludge they would give me, human or animal. gs

 

[novatech]

Here's an article that even includes cattle studies
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2008-03-10-drugs-tap-water_N.htm

To be sure, the concentrations of these pharmaceuticals are tiny, measured in quantities of parts per billion or trillion, far below the levels of a medical dose

I would think that if really bothers you then by all means don't get in your car and drive to work. There is a lot more risk and you are polluting the air by doing it. :lol2:
There is only one way to stop pollution and that is to kill every living thing on earth and then the volcanoes will still do it.

 

[Anonymous]

I think it's something to be aware of is all. We can't pretend it isn't an issue and just cross our fingers that there aren't long term health affects. Ppm doesnt matter if your exposed to ppm every day for 30 years to a cocktail of residues.
I might change my mind if there was any info on how effective the treatment actually is in the removal of the residual pharmecuticals from the sludge itself.

 

[1wlimo]

I think it's something to be aware of is all. We can't pretend it isn't an issue and just cross our fingers that there aren't long term health affects. Ppm doesnt matter if your exposed to ppm every day for 30 years to a cocktail of residues.
I might change my mind if there was any info on how effective the treatment actually is in the removal of the residual pharmecuticals from the sludge itself.

You are correct, however I am more concerned with the levels in the water that come out of a treatment plant to go down river then back into the water system for the next town etc.

At least the sludge is in contact with the soil where there is the chance for the soil micro's to work on them.

 

[Anonymous]

Water is the bigger problem Wilmo. At the same time though because we do raise bovines, we have a responsibility that others don't. A responsability to the land, to our families, and to the people that eat our products.
Most of society doesn't have that responsablility because they are consumers and not producers.
I doubt many here that use the sludge for a soil amendment have given much more thought to its use. Beyond it saves them money, it works, and does it stink. But id bet the concern stops there for the majority.
Frankly, to me that aint right.