The Canadian Water Network (CWN) through its Canadian Municipal Water Consortium (CMWC) funded a Knowledge Integration Project to evaluate the potential risks associated with the application of municipal biosolids to Canadian agricultural soil.  Of special interest were the risks posed by the so-called emerging substances of concern (ESOCs) and pathogenic organisms present in biosolids.  This project involved the elaboration of a comprehensive report on the current knowledge on the assessment of these risks, and related topics, such as the fate of ESOCs and pathogens during biosolids production, their fate and transport in soil after biosolids application, and public perception of biosolids land application practices.  After the report was peer-reviewed, CWN convened a group of experts from academia, government, and the wastewater industry in a workshop to discuss the conclusions of the report, define the research needs to address the unknowns and uncertainties on the possible impacts during the acceptable use of biosolids for agricultural purposes and to reach consensus on the sustainability of biosolids land application.  Finally, the group put together the elements of a Canadian national biosolids research agenda, including: ESOCs and pathogens risk assessment; phosphorus availability, removal, and release; a national risk communication strategy; odour and nuisance issues; long-term biosolids land application studies; and climate change mitigation.  This poster summarizes the main results from the literature review and the conclusions of the workshop.

Towards a Canadian national biosolids research agenda

255th National Meeting (2018)

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