Sludge Watch ==> Sludge and cement dust- Nova Scotia N-Viro tells farmers 'Get used to it'

[Maureen Reilly]

Sludgewatch Admin:

Big profit in poop?
Maybe...but not from selling it.

In this story the Canadian CEO of N-Viro Systems Canada says he is charging 
farmers a 'few dollars' a tonne for this sewage sludge and cement kiln dust 
mixture.  He doesn't name  the product.   But if indeed this stuff is sold 
to farmers with claims of soil or crop improvement, then it is required to 
meet the standards of the Fertilizers Act. But earlier this week the 
Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) who regulates fertilizers and 
supplements, told Sludge Watch that the material has NOT been given a 
'letter of no objection' to sale.  It remains to be confirmed whether this 
material is being sold, and whether it meets the requirements of the 
Fertilizer Act.

The story describes the material as 'Class A' or 'EQ' product.  Those are 
not terms used in the Fertilizer Act.  That is the language of the land 
application of sewage sludge as waste under a province of Nova Scotia 
permit.

So is this regulated as fertilizer by the Feds or is this a provincial waste 
permit material that is distributed for free?  The story doesn't really make 
it clear.

But you can find out just which agency is supposed to be regulating this 
stuff (if any):

1.  Reach out to the City of Halifax and ask them if this material is 
distributed under provincial permit as biosolids or if it is managed under 
federal regulations as fertilizer/ supplement under CFIA jurisdiction. Ask 
them for a copy of the required fertilizer label.  Ask them if the material 
is sold.

And while you are at it, find out about this 'big money in poop' claim.  Ask 
the Mayor how much money the Halifax taxpayer is giving to N-Viro 
Systems...and ask how much the City has received back. Ask how much per ton 
the taxpayer is paying to receive cement kiln dust from Lafarge Cement in 
Brookfield.  You will be amazed what the taxpayer is asked to pony up for 
industrial wastes.

Contact:
Mayor Peter J. Kelly
Halifax Regional Municipality
              902-490-4010
kellyp at halifax.ca


2.  Reach out to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and see if they have 
provided a letter of no objection to the sale of the Halifax sludge 
material.  Since the material can be distributed without any federal 
approval but must still meet all the requirements of the Fertilizer Act if 
it is sold, then you can make a complaint and ask the CFIA to investigate.  
Since no one has provided a label for this 'fertilizer', we must wonder 
whether it really is a legal fertilizer.

CFIA contact:

MP Gerry Ritz
Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Foods
Tel  (613) 995-7080
Fax: (613) 996-8472
or write to him (postage free in Canada)
The Honourable Gerry Ritz
Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food
Government of Canada
9th Floor, Sir John Carling Building
930 Carling Avenue
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0C5

or for details of Fertilizer regulations:
Kate Billingsley
Canadian Food Inspection Agency
(613) 221-7508 Fax:(613) 228-6629
billingsleyk at inspection.gc.ca

You might want to ask the Minister if spreading sewer sludge mixed with 
cement kiln dust on food lands  is part of his "Food and Consumer Safety 
Action Plan"
http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/ahc-asc/media/nr-cp/2008/2008_08_e.html


4.  Ask Rae Wallin of N-Viro Systems

Ask him to provide a copy of the label for this material, and ask him 
whether it is distributed as a fertilizer under the Fertilizer Act or if it 
is distributed free under provincial permit as 'biosolids'.
Ask him for a complete analysis of the material. Ask him to include the 
thallium levels.

Rae Wallin
N-Viro Systems Canada
(613) 348-3302. Fax: (613) 348-1050.
Email: wallin at recorder.ca , rwallin at sympatico.ca
helen.gallaugher at sympatico.ca

5. Ask the Province of Nova Scotia if they have provided a permit for the 
land application of this N-Viro process material from Halifax. Ask for 
copies of the tests they performed on the material.

Ministry of the Environment
Hon. Kerry Morash,
5151 Terminal Road
PO Box 697Halifax, Nova Scotia
B3J 2T8
Ph: (902) 424-4125 or
Phone: 902.424.6647
Fax: 902.424.0575
E-mail: doehlfx.baidenls at gov.ns.ca

For more history:
http://n-viro.blogspot.com/

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>



There’s big profit in poop
HRM stands to make $350,000 a year selling treated sewage sludge
By DEVIN STEVENS
Sat. May 17 2008



Rae Wallin, right, president and CEO of N-Viro Systems Canada Ltd., shows 
Halifax Mayor Peter Kelly some of the systems at the biosolids processing 
facility in in Goffs on Friday. The plant treats sludge from the Halifax 
Harbour Solutions Project. (Darren Pittman / Staff)





It’s flushed down your toilet, flows to a sewage treatment plant, is 
trucked out to a plant near Halifax Stanfield International Airport, and as 
of Thursday, it’s being shipped out to farmers’ fields across the 
province.

The mayor of Halifax Regional Municipality says the city’s sewage will 
eventually be worth $350,000 a year.

"It’s very environmentally responsible," Mayor Peter Kelly said Thursday 
at the Aerotech Park biosolids processing facility in Goffs, near the 
airport.

"We have taken the solids out of (Halifax Harbour). It’s one that we’ve 
had complaints about over the years. You don’t see those floatables 
anymore downtown."

The mayor was taking a tour of the processing plant along with councillors 
Jim Smith (Albro Lake-Harbourview), Sheila Fougere (Connaught-Quinpool) and 
Andrew Younger (East Dartmouth-The Lakes). They learned that turning 
Halifax’s sewage into a soil additive is a complicated process. First, the 
solid waste is separated from the water, creating a type of sludge that is 
taken by truck to the processing plant, where it’s mixed with dust from a 
cement kiln and lime. The mix is dried in a rotary drum, raising the 
temperature and pH level. Then it’s stored at a controlled temperature for 
12 hours. The mix is scrubbed to remove particles and acid, then biofiltered 
for odour control. It comes out the other end looking like grey soil and 
smelling a bit like cement mix.

The use of human waste in farmers’ fields is a contentious issue. The 
Cutten family of Lower Truro suffered huge financial loses after installing 
expensive sewage lagoons on their 160-hectare farm with the Environment 
Department’s blessing a few years ago. An environmental group raised 
concerns about the practice, and the department changed its mind in October 
2004 and revoked the Cuttens’ permit to spread human waste on their 
fields.

Councillors and officials from N-Viro Systems Canada said Friday that the 
treated sewage qualifies as a class A or EQ product. That’s a fancy way of 
saying it’s the best quality available and is safe to use on any plant.

Samples are taken regularly and tested at an independent laboratory.

"It actually exceeds the quality of stuff that’s already being spread on 
fields across Nova Scotia," Mr. Younger said.

"It eliminates the concern that some people had that there would be some 
sort of risk associated with this."

The biosolids processing plant is part of the Harbour Solutions Project, 
intended to end the practice of dumping raw sewage into Halifax Harbour. 
Halifax and Dartmouth have allowed their sewage to flow into the harbour 
since the mid-1700s.

New sludge will eventually come from all three sewage treatment plants in 
metro Halifax. The plant on Barrington Street began operating in February, 
while the ones in Dartmouth and Herring Cove are expected to start up later 
this year.

Mr. Younger said he scuba dives in the harbour and has noticed the 
difference since the first plant began operating.

"I can tell you it’s a lot better now than it was before," he said with a 
chuckle.

"And that’s only with one plant on the go. So once all the plants are up 
and running, I think you’ll see a big difference."

Mr. Kelly didn’t shy away from the treated product, shifting it in his 
hands and at one point standing more than ankle-deep in it.

"It’s (a project) we knew was supported by the public," Mr. Kelly said. 
"It’s one that we knew had to be done."

The first truckloads of the sewage-derived soil additive went out to farms 
on Thursday.

Rae Wallin, president and CEO of N-Viro Systems, said the product is 
completely safe and free of toxins, and everything used to make it, even the 
air, is filtered and cleaned.

The city pays the Ontario company to take the sludge and shares the profits 
with the company.

Mr. Wallin said N-Viro charges farmers a few dollars a tonne right now but 
the price should rise to $12 to $14 a tonne as more farmers begin using the 
product. He hopes to eventually ship 35,000 tonnes a year.

"That’s after our market is developed," Mr. Wallin said. "We have to get 
the farmers here used to the product."

http://thechronicleherald.ca/Front/1056392.html