[Terrapreta] Frenzy - wordsmithing, humour, no TP value

[Philip Small]

On sludge.  Sludge-N applied to farm fields normally replaces N manufactured
using nonrenewable energy.

The bulk of municipal waste water treatment solids is microbial biomass.  It
may smell like shit because it is still putrescible and smells anaerobic,
but it isn't faeces anymore. Much of the putrescible content is food waste,
especially in communities with kitchen sinks set to up with garbage
disposals (I favor sewer fees on garbage disposals.  If you have one, wise
up and yank it off).  Stabilized after 20-25 days of detention, with most of
the putrescible characteristic used up to grow biomass, biosolids achieves a
classic microbial C/N of 6-8, and an N content of between 3 and 6% on a dry
weight basis.  Even considering that only 25% of that org-N is
plant-available the first year, at US$0.5/lb in 2007 and 2x that in 2008,
that org-N content is of considerable fertilizer value: $15-30/dry ton.  Add
another $10-$20/dry ton for the mineral-N content.  At 5DT/ac, that's an
applied value $125-$250/acre in 2008.  What will it be in 2009?

For sludge that can be trusted (I believe some can, some
can't<http://transectpoints.blogspot.com/2008/06/hephzibah-sludge.html>)
it makes more sense to me to bulk up sludge with char than to make the
sludge into char.  For one, the N in sludge in mineralized with a fair
amount of inefficiency. Ammonia volatization and denitrification also take
its toll on sludge-N uptake efficiency. Adding char can help with the
denitrification especially. Another consideration is that sludge is fairly
high in organic acids, such as humic acids and especially fulvic acids. That
seems a valuable  complement to char.

Each sludge is different, and each community's land resource is different.
If the candidate fields are all in N-fixing alfalfa or legume-mix pasture,
well it doesn't make as sense to retain the N value, but it would make sense
if the candidate fields are wheat. Just some thoughts. -philip




On Wed, Jun 11, 2008 at 6:52 AM, Gary Barei <garyb1957 at gmail.com> wrote:

> OK, this one time, I'll bite --- wordsmithing
>
> We've all gotten so politically correct, technically competent, hell,
> media-savy and diplomatic!!
>
> If it looks like shit, and it smells like shit, and it tastes like shit
> ........ Momma says ... it probably is SHIT!
>
> So, let's cook it up, say 500 degrees Fahrenheit, no oxygen allowed ...
> black gravelly / powderly looking stuff  ...
>
> Hmmmmmmmmm ....
>
> Looks like : a soil amendment,  maybe a water and  ion  retentive,  a
> microbial  heaven  on earth  (literally), a CO2 trap  ....
> Smells like: well, hell ... it doesn't smell ... except for that sweet
> organic, grassy, earthy,  we had the best time in the corn rows (sorry, I
> digress)....
> Tastes like:  Well, it just tastes good, natural I guess, plants loved it
> ... less herbicides, fertilizer and pain ... and we all did it in a crappy
> way, if you get my drift!
>
> SO - what does Momma say now?  Same as ever!!!  Look, Smell, Taste --- how
> is your local, regional, national politician, taking Momma's good advice?
>
> I'm afraid to do the math, but 6 Billion of us must have, say, minimum, 250
> gm of "night soil, bio-sludge, post-processed biomass, nutrient depleted
> excrement" to contribute daily  ... somebody post the number ... I'm too
> afraid to launch the calculator.... What if we pyrolysed it?
> ..............oops, say it out loud!
>
> ENERGY
> POOP/NUTRIENTS (yeah, I mention that, but most like to look the other way!
> ~LOL~, so many goodies left over!)
> BIOCHAR - soil me, drop me in the river .... I wish I could sing the blues
>
> How to save the planet?  ...  Laugh at the above, and get serious about
> tomorrow's choices.........
>
> My 2 cents, Canadian, at the time of posting, global market calamity
> trading in currency notwithstanding.  Thanks!
>
> BTW, I bought oil at $79 US last  November ... Dumped it recently, but it
> makes me sadder, every day :-(
>
> There it is!  La Poo Point!
>
> *******************
>
>
>
>
> On Wed, Jun 11, 2008 at 4:15 AM, MFH <mfh01 at bigpond.net.au> wrote:
>
>>  Its becoming increasingly obvious that there's the beginning of a whole
>> new "wordsmithing" industry on how to save the planet, like using human poo:
>> http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/06/11/2271675.htm
>>
>>
>>
>
>
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>



-- 
Philip Small, RPSS
Land Profile, Inc. * PO Box 2175 * Spokane, WA 99210
509-844-2944 cell * 509-838-4996 fax * 509-838-9860 office
Profile: http://www.linkedin.com/in/philipsmall
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