Spreading Sludge on fields

[FutureFarmer]

Does anyone here have experience of spreading sludge (treated/untreated) on their land? If so, is there anything I need to be aware of?

We're looking into this, primarily to help the grass grow, rather than using fertiliser.

 

[davidroberts30]

Heavy metals
Micro Plastics
Sanitary products

The fact they will charge you to contaminate your land

 

[ollie989898]

Does anyone here have experience of spreading sludge (treated/untreated) on their land? If so, is there anything I need to be aware of?

We're looking into this, primarily to help the grass grow, rather than using fertiliser.

Done it a fair bit.

AFAIK, there is no disposal of untreated sludge to land these days, it is all treated these days.

There may be small amounts of plastic in it. Look at samples carefully. you may find plants grow on the heaps if they are sat for a fair time. Don't be alarmed- they are normally tomatoes.

There is virtually no risk of foreign bodies (tyres, blocks etc) in sewage sludge. It is also quite dense and spreads nicely at good distances. You simply use a rear discharge machine and open up the back door around a foot and let it trickle out. It contains a lot of phosphate.

Your neighbours may complain about the smell. Normally I would expect it to be ploughed under for the following crop. I have only seen it spread on grassland once and it was marginally more pleasant than chicken litter for this use. If you upset enough people they will complain to the council and insist that it is incorporated within 24 hours by ploughing or similar.

There may be trace levels of heavy metals in sewage. The supplying company will insist on having soil tests done to check for these before spreading. Don't be alarmed if your soils already contain varying amounts of nickel/lead/chromium as many soils naturally have some of these about. Some a lot more than others.

Generally, sewage companies deliver the material in sealed skip type lorries so they will need a hardstanding to drive and tip on. Do not site the heaps anywhere near a slope or a watercourse as in a good heavy rain the stuff can flow downhill. You may want to spend a day in a digger and create a few earth banks for it to rest within. These can be levelled out when the spreading has finished.

Don't let your dog walk or roll in the stuff and bring a pair of gloves when spreading in case something breaks.

 

[Ffermer Bach]

I shared this on another thread

Secret report details toxic chemicals in sewage used as fertiliser at English farms

The Environment Agency found sewage sludge destined for English fields was contaminated with microplastics, weedkiller, and “persistent organic pollutants”

unearthed.greenpeace.org

 

[Rob Holmes]

You’ll need PAS100 certified if applying to grassland for feeding livestock
@BAC

 

[ollie989898]

The presence of salmonella or e.coli bacteria in sewage is of no surprise to me and it won't make any difference when applied to soil because the soil is full of microbes anyway. PCBs and the like are potentially more of an issue.

 

[Courier]

Why if the sludge is fully treated should an application end up spawning a crop of tomato plants …..?
It was a few years ago but Yorkshire Water insisted it was “treated”.

 

[serf]

Heavy metals
Micro Plastics
Sanitary products

The fact they will charge you to contaminate your land

What's not to like ....

 

[serf]

I shared this on another thread

Secret report details toxic chemicals in sewage used as fertiliser at English farms

The Environment Agency found sewage sludge destined for English fields was contaminated with microplastics, weedkiller, and “persistent organic pollutants”

unearthed.greenpeace.org

First thing I thought of when seen thread come up ...
bargepole job !

 

[ollie989898]

Why if the sludge is fully treated should an application end up spawning a crop of tomato plants …..?
It was a few years ago but Yorkshire Water insisted it was “treated”.

Different kinds of treatment. If it has been through an AD plant then I doubt there will be any tomato plants.

In the past, I think they used to strain it, dewater it and then stabilise it with lime (basically make it into a solid substance to make it economic to cart) and then spread it but only after it had been sat in a storage/treatment or settling tank for some time.

I've spread sludge that didn't seem to smell much, mostly smelled of washing powder in fact. Someone will be along to tell you the details of all of this. It is a good fertiliser. Best crop of maize I ever saw in the UK was on land that had been fed sewage.

 

[betweenthelines]

Heavy metals
Micro Plastics
Sanitary products

Sounds like a great night out!

 

[nxy]

Many (more than 30) years ago a friend in the midlands was contacted by an agent working for the local water company. They needed a site to store raw sewage sludge. A major sewage works just outside a major midlands town had gone wrong and the settlement tanks had solidified somehow with raw sludge and they needed to dig it out with a 360 and needed somewhere to put it. It was mid winter and it had been wet for months but my friend had a site close to the works with good access just off a dual carriageway layby. A figure was discussed and agreed and several thousand tonnes of raw sewage was piled on a few acres of land. It would have been 6 to 8m high at the summit. It stayed there all summer and the plan was eventually for it to be spread after harvest on neighbouring farms. By late summer it was covered in tomatoes and most saturday afternoons the lay by would fill with cars and families could be seen climbing the heap on their hands and knees to pick from the better plants on the top.

 

[deleted user 436632456]

You’ll need PAS100 certified if applying to grassland for feeding livestock
@BAC

It's definitely not a PAS100 certificate.

Sewage sludge is outlawed by the PAS 100/110 schemes.

 

[deleted user 436632456]

The sewage sludge code of practise is right here https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/sewage-sludge-in-agriculture-code-of-practice

 

[Greythundercloudys]

Isn't it pelleted now a dayz, hen dung would be better, it could fairly grow grass, used to be a guy Richard Edwards run it from hen places threw at Edinburgh but that was 25 years ago.

 

[Ali_Maxxum]

A customer of ours is getting a load of bio solids, the treated kind. As I understand someone came out and did all sorts of assessments and set up some tripod that took 3D scans of the lands and all sorts before it was decided where it could be tipped!

Farm next to us has various heaps to go onto arable ground in the spring.

I'm sure I've spread it before, as it was a bit more 'solid' I'm sure we only had the back doors open about 1/4 or maybe 1/3 at most, throws it fairish and spreads quite well. Don't remember any particular stench compared to wet chicken litter.

 

[borderterribles]

Does anyone here have experience of spreading sludge (treated/untreated) on their land? If so, is there anything I need to be aware of?

We're looking into this, primarily to help the grass grow, rather than using fertiliser.

I didn't think that it was allowed to spread sewage sludge on any crop that was going to be directly consumed by people OR livestock? Also, I would be very concerned about using it on rented ground.

 

[Bald n Grumpy]

Supposed to be ploughed or worked in straight away if it's spread on stubble isn't it?