THE PROBLEMS AND PROSPECTS OF UTILIZATION OF SEWAGE SLUDGE AND RECLAMATION OF DISTURBED LANDS IN THE NORTH-WEST OF RUSSIA AND WAYS TO SOLVE THEM JOINTLY

Abstract

This review article raises the related issue of disturbed land reclamation and sewage sludge disposal. One of the components of disturbed land reclamation is considered - the problem of obtaining the most accessible and cheap fertile soil layer in sufficient quantity, options are listed: natural humus horizon; substrates based on peat of varying degrees of decomposition, based on wood waste from logging and woodworking, based on composts (leaf litter, agricultural waste, other). The main emphasis is placed on substrates based on municipal sewage sludge and pulp and paper mill waste, on the basis of which, during processing, organo-mineral compositions can be obtained with their further use as fertile soil layer. Gaps are noted in the modern regulatory framework, especially in relation to the use of sewage sludge as a fertile soil layer for the reclamation of disturbed land, including on forest fund lands. As an example, the situation with the use and disposal of sewage sludge in the Northwestern Federal District was considered based on data on the volume of waste production at existing wastewater treatment plants. Three categories of sewage sludge are distinguished by composition and two main methods of disposal currently used (incineration and removal to municipal service waste landfills). Separately, attention is focused on the situation with the accumulation of sewage sludge at wastewater treatment plants in settlements, including those with a pulp and paper mill as a city-forming enterprise. In conclusion, conclusions are drawn about the need to improve the existing regulatory framework in terms of the use of sewage sludge for the purposes of reclamation, about the priority of developing organo-mineral compositions that meet the tasks of reclamation, giving them an official status, and about the advisability of developing a strategic state document aimed at regulating the issues of reclamation of disturbed lands: the relevance of which is confirmed by the annual increasing areas, passing into the category of disturbed land.