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Papers
61,005 resultsShowing papers similar to Challenges and solutions of municipal biosolids market creation: A critical review
ClearBiosolids-derived fertilisers: A review of challenges and opportunities
This review examines the use of treated sewage sludge (biosolids) as farm fertilizer and the concern that it introduces microplastics and persistent organic contaminants into agricultural soil. While biosolids provide valuable nutrients for crops, the microplastics they contain can accumulate in soil over time and potentially enter the food chain. The authors discuss thermal processing and nutrient recovery technologies that could help remove contaminants while preserving the fertilizer value of biosolids.
Land Application of Biosolids in Europe: Possibilities, Con-Straints and Future Perspectives
This review examines how sewage sludge, or biosolids, is used as agricultural fertilizer across European countries and the regulations governing this practice. While biosolids provide valuable nutrients like phosphorus, the study highlights concerns about contaminants including microplastics, pharmaceuticals, and heavy metals that could enter soil and food chains through land application.
A review on the fate and effects of contaminants in biosolids applied on land: Hazards and government regulatory policies
This review examines the contaminants, including microplastics and persistent organic pollutants, that remain in treated sewage sludge (biosolids) when it is applied to farmland as fertilizer. These pollutants can accumulate in soil and potentially enter crops and groundwater, creating exposure pathways to humans. The authors argue that current government regulations on biosolid use, particularly in the US, are outdated and need updating to address emerging contaminants like microplastics.
Advancing sustainable agriculture through multi-omics profiling of biosolids for safe application: A review
This review examines the potential benefits and risks of using biosolids from wastewater treatment as agricultural soil amendments. Researchers highlight that while biosolids provide valuable nutrients, they may also contain contaminants including pharmaceuticals, PFAS, pathogens, and microplastics that could transfer to cropland. The study advocates for multi-omics profiling approaches to better characterize these risks before widespread agricultural application.
Current challenges on the widespread adoption of new bio-based fertilizers: insights to move forward toward more circular food systems
This review examines the challenges of adopting bio-based fertilizers made from food and agricultural waste as replacements for synthetic mineral fertilizers. While bio-based fertilizers can improve soil health and reduce reliance on finite resources, barriers include inconsistent nutrient content, concerns about contaminants like microplastics and heavy metals in waste-derived products, and the need for farmer-friendly application methods. The study is relevant because sewage sludge used in some fertilizers is a known source of microplastic contamination in farmland.
Emerging environmental health risks associated with the land application of biosolids: a scoping review
This review examines the health and environmental risks of spreading treated sewage sludge (biosolids) on farmland, which can introduce microplastics, pharmaceuticals, and other emerging contaminants into soil and water. The authors found that current regulations do not adequately address these newer pollutants. They call for better wastewater treatment, reduced plastic and pharmaceutical use, and updated regulations to protect communities near treated farmland.
Microplastics in biosolids: A review of ecological implications and methods for identification, enumeration, and characterization
This review examines the presence of microplastics in biosolids from wastewater treatment plants and their ecological effects when applied to agricultural soils. Researchers found conflicting evidence about the extent of negative ecosystem impacts, with some studies showing harmful effects and others reporting minimal consequences. The study highlights the lack of standardized methods for measuring microplastics in biosolids and calls for consistent analytical approaches to better assess the risks.
Occurrence, spatiotemporal trends, fate, and treatment technologies for microplastics and organic contaminants in biosolids: A review
This meta-analysis examines how microplastics and organic pollutants end up in biosolids (treated sewage) and what happens when those biosolids are applied to farmland. The data show that microplastics are among the most common contaminants found in biosolids, raising concerns about long-term buildup in the soils where our food is grown.
Characteristics, limitations and global regulations in the use of biogas digestate as fertilizer: A comprehensive overview
This review examines the use of biogas digestate, the leftover material from biogas production, as agricultural fertilizer, highlighting both its benefits and risks. While digestate is rich in nutrients, it can contain contaminants including heavy metals, pathogens, and microplastics that may enter the food chain through treated crops. The authors review global regulations and call for stricter quality controls to prevent microplastic and other contaminant transfer to agricultural soils.
Sewage sludge as a sustainable fertilizer: Promise, pitfalls, and future directions
This review examines both the promise and pitfalls of using sewage sludge as a fertilizer, finding that while it reduces agrochemical costs and provides nutrients for crops, it also introduces microplastics, pathogens, and heavy metals into agricultural soils with implications for food safety and public health.
Investigation and analysis of microplastics in sewage sludge and biosolids: A case study from one wastewater treatment works in the UK
Researchers investigated microplastic contamination in sewage sludge and biosolids at a UK wastewater treatment plant and found significant quantities of microplastics persisting through the treatment process. Since millions of tonnes of biosolids are applied to farmland annually in the UK, this represents a major pathway for microplastic pollution entering agricultural soils. The study highlights the need for better monitoring and treatment methods to reduce microplastic transfer from wastewater to the terrestrial environment.
Co-contaminant risks in water reuse and biosolids application for agriculture
This review highlights that treated wastewater and biosolids used in farming contain a complex mixture of pollutants including microplastics, pharmaceuticals, pesticides, and antibiotic-resistant bacteria that enter soil and can be taken up by crops. The combined effects of these pollutants may be greater than the sum of their individual risks, underscoring the need for better safety assessments of recycled water and waste used in food production.
Opportunities and challenges organo-mineral fertiliser can play in enabling food security
This review examines organo-mineral fertilizers, which combine organic waste materials like manure and food scraps with reduced amounts of conventional mineral fertilizers, as a strategy for more sustainable farming. While not about microplastics specifically, the study is relevant because sewage biosolids used in organic fertilizer blends can contain microplastics that then enter agricultural soil. The review discusses policy interventions needed to balance food security with environmental protection.
Standardization: A Necessary Support for the Utilization of Sludge/Biosolids in Agriculture
Not relevant to microplastics — this paper discusses standardization of characterization procedures for sewage sludge and biosolids used in agricultural applications, covering quality, safety, and European regulatory frameworks.
Contemporary Drift in Emerging Micro(nano)plastics Removal and Upcycling Technologies from Municipal Wastewater Sludge: Strategic Innovations and Prospects
This review evaluates both conventional and advanced methods for removing microplastics from sewage sludge before it is applied to farmland as fertilizer. Current treatment processes like anaerobic digestion and composting reduce but do not eliminate microplastics, and some methods can actually fragment larger plastics into more numerous smaller pieces. The authors identify emerging technologies and upcycling strategies that could better address this pathway of microplastic contamination in agricultural soils.
Occurrence and environmental consequences of microplastics and nanoplastics from agricultural reuse of wastewater and biosolids in the soil ecosystem: A review
This review examines how wastewater and sewage sludge used in agriculture introduce microplastics and nanoplastics into farm soil, where they can persist and accumulate over time. Municipal wastewater can contain thousands of plastic particles per liter, and treated sewage sludge used as fertilizer can contain over 30,000 particles per liter. These practices create a long-term buildup of plastic contamination in agricultural soil that can affect crops, groundwater, and ultimately human food and water supplies.
A review of methods for mitigating microplastic contamination in biosolids from wastewater treatment plants before agricultural soil application
This review examines methods for reducing microplastic contamination in biosolids from wastewater treatment plants before they are applied to agricultural soils. Researchers assessed physical, physicochemical, and biological approaches and found that each has inherent limitations, from inconsistent microbial degradation efficiency to filter design constraints. The study suggests that combining multiple methods at different intervention points within the treatment process offers the most promising path toward effective microplastic mitigation.
Risk Assessment and Regulatory Overview of Sewage Sludge
This review examines the risks associated with using sewage sludge biosolids as agricultural soil amendments, including contamination by heavy metals, pharmaceuticals, pathogens, and microplastics. Researchers summarized the concentrations of harmful substances found in biosolids and their potential effects on human health and the environment. The study provides reference standards for improving national regulations around biosolid application in agriculture.
Emerging contaminants in biosolids: Presence, fate and analytical techniques
Researchers reviewed how "emerging contaminants" — including pharmaceuticals, PFAS (forever chemicals), flame retardants, and microplastics — behave in sewage sludge (biosolids) and wastewater treatment plants, and how they can transform into potentially more toxic breakdown products. The review evaluated detection methods and called for better regulation and advanced analytical tools to track these pollutants as they move through water treatment systems and into the environment.
Variation in microplastic concentration, characteristics and distribution in sewage sludge & biosolids around the world
Researchers systematically reviewed 65 studies on microplastics in sewage sludge and biosolids from wastewater treatment plants around the world. They found that while treatment processes remove 57% to 99% of microplastics from wastewater, the removed particles concentrate in sludge that is often applied to agricultural land. The review highlights that land application of biosolids may be a significant, underappreciated pathway for microplastic pollution in soils.
Sewage Sludge in Agricultural Lands. The Legislative Framework in EU-28
This review examines the legislative framework across EU member states for using sewage sludge as agricultural fertilizer. While sludge provides valuable nutrients and organic matter, researchers found it can also contain contaminants including microplastics, heavy metals, and pathogens. The study highlights the need for updated regulations that account for emerging pollutants like microplastics to better protect soil health and food safety.
Microplastics and pollutants in biosolids have contaminated agricultural soils: An analytical study and a proposal to cease the use of biosolids in farmlands and utilise them in sustainable bricks
Researchers analyzed the contamination of agricultural soils from biosolids (treated wastewater sludge) that are commonly applied to farmlands. The study found that biosolids introduce microplastics, nanoplastics, heavy metals, pharmaceuticals, and engineered nanoparticles into soils, and proposed that biosolid use in agriculture should be phased out in favor of incorporating the material into sustainable building bricks.
Microplastic contamination in sewage sludge: Abundance, characteristics, and impacts on the environment and human health
This review focuses on microplastics found in sewage sludge, which is often spread on agricultural land as fertilizer. The practice introduces microplastics directly into farm soil, where they can be taken up by crops or leach into groundwater. This creates a pathway for microplastics to reach human food and drinking water, raising concerns about the safety of using sewage sludge in agriculture.
Risk of re-release of microplastics from sewage fertilisers into the environment
This paper reviews the risk that microplastics in sewage sludge (biosolids used as agricultural fertilizer) will be re-released into soils and water when the sludge is land-applied. Microplastics from cosmetics and clothing fibers concentrate in sludge during wastewater treatment and persist because they resist biodegradation. Applying microplastic-contaminated biosolids to farmland is one of the major pathways through which microplastics enter agricultural soils.