Enhancing agricultural production through the use of alkaline stabilized biosolids

Agricultural use of municipal biosolids has many possible benefits for producers, including improved soil physical properties and fertility supplements for crop production. However, recent concerns with pharmaceutical ingredients, consumer product ingredients, and hormones entering into sensitive ecological environments such as surface or ground water has brought into question the continued use of biosolids in agriculture. The goal of this project is identify the presence of key emerging substances of concern , based on high volume use or sales of the products, in an agricultural ecosystem which has been exposed to multiple applications over four years. Furthermore, the project will evaluate the fate and transport potential of these compounds, specifically as it relates to their movement into water or plant tissues.

Faculty Supervisor:

Dr. Gordon Price

Student:

Kambiz Khosravi

Partner:

2 Ridge Farms

Discipline:

Engineering

Sector:

Agriculture

University:

Dalhousie University