P r o te c tin g O u r W a te r E n v ir o n m e n t
Metropolitan
Water
Reclamation
M
etropolitan W
ater R
eclam ation District
D istrict of
of Greater
G reater Chicago
C h icago
Producing Class A Biosolids The
Chicago Way – A Unique PFRP
Equivalency Process
Dr. Lakhwinder S. Hundal
Sr. Environmental Soil Scientist
EM&R Department
Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago
NWBMA Conference, Chelan, WA Sept 19 – 21, 2010
About The MWRD
 Founded in 1889 to protect water quality of Lake Michigan
 Services Cook County Illinois including city of Chicago and
125 suburban communities
 Service area covers 875 sq. miles and includes 5.5 million
people + industry equivalent to 5.7 million people
 Operates seven water reclamation plants handling daily
flow of 1.5 billion gallons
– Fill 450 acre swimming pool 10 ft. deep daily
 Produces ~180,000 dry tons biosolids annually
– Takes ~ 15,000 semi trailers to haul annual production
It is a Big Pile of Poop!!
Evolution of Solids Management …
 Solids management was not
an issue in 1889
 Became a necessity in 1920s
 Constructed Imhoff Tanks
• Calumet WRP in 1922
• Stickney WRP in 1930
 Imhoff tanks provided sludge
storage and digestion
Evolution of Solids Management …
contd.
 Installed lagoons in 1937 to handle IHS, WAS, & PS
 Long-term storage discontinued in 1970s
• Due to horrific odor and public outcry
• Dwindling lagoon capacity
Disposal in lagoons – Not a good option
Evolution of Solids Management …
contd.
 Evaluated feasibility and economics of three
alternatives:
•
IHS drying on sand beds
• Separate digestion in heated tanks and drying on
sand beds
•
Mechanical dewatering IHS, heat drying & incineration
 Adopted the 3rd alternative; built a mechanical
dewatering facility, a heat drying, and an
incineration plant in 1937
Era of Nitroganic Tankage
 Sold as:
• Bulk to citrus farmers in Florida
• In bags as Nitrorganic Tankage
 Heat drying abandoned in 1981
• Energy shortage in 1979
• O&M costs too high
• Environmental awareness
Era of Nu Earth (1930s – 1987)

Air-dried Imhoff sludge “Give Away”
program
 Used in home gardens as a “soil builder”
 Public loved it
Promoting Nu Earth
Demise of Nu Earth
 Discontinued in 1987 due to:
 High metal content – Cd >
>300 mg/kg
 Bad press
 The District commit to
distribute biosolids only
under controlled practice
“Prairie Plan” Fulton
County, IL - 1971
Using Liquid Sludge For
Reclamation of StripMined Land
Barging Liquid Sludge 200 miles Down
the Illinois River to Fulton County
Won the engineering award of 1974 –
Competition was BART in San Francisco,
CA and Sears Tower in Chicago
“Prairie Plan” Fulton County, IL
 No biosolids to site since 2004 because:
 Production of air-dried EQ biosolids
 Ability to find local outlets for EQ biosolids
 Plain economics – Cost savings
 Air-dried EQ biosolids readily accepted as topsoil
substitute for daily and final covers in municipal
landfills
 Increased local demand for air-dried EQ biosolids
Common Beneficial Uses
 Soil Amendment / Soil Conditioner
Improve soil fertility and soil tilth
 Substitute for Commercial Fertilizers
Top dressing golf courses
Fertilizing agricultural crops
 Substitute for Topsoil
Construction of recreational facilities
 Landfill Cover – Daily and final cover
Cinder Ridge Golf Links
Area: 100 acres, 18-hole
course
Quantity = 500 – 600 ton/yr
Savings: >$25,000
Harborside International Golf Course
 453-acre site including two 18 hole
courses and golf academy
 Over 500,000 dry tons of District’s
biosolids used in final cover of landfill
 Hosted Georgia-pacific senior PGA pro
Am and SBC senior open
 Voted third best municipal golf course
in USA by the golf week magazine
?
Harborside International Golf Course
Chicago River
Sculpture Park in
Chicago
Area: 4 acres
Application rate = 650 ton/ac
Savings: >$75,000
BIOSOLIDS Utilization SUMMARY
Golf Courses, Parks
(10%)
Landfill
Co-disposal
(3%)
Major Initiatives Undertaken to
Attain Current Program
 PFRP-Equivalent Class A Certification
 Increase Research and Demonstration
Activities
PFRP-Equivalency Certification
 After 1993 the District started evaluating its
solids processing trains for Class A PFRP
 Evaluated pathogen analyses of 344 samples
from 1991-1996 monitoring
 Filed a petition to USEPA’s Pathogen
Equivalency Committee
 Pathogen analysis on additional 1,400 samples
 Stickney and Calumet WRPs processing trains
granted Class A PFRP equivalency in July 2002
PFRP-Equivalent Codified Operation
1.Anaerobic Digestion


Temperature – 95ºF minimum
Retention time – minimum 20 days
2.Centrifugation (High Solids Processing Train)

Solids content – 25 to 30 percent
3.Lagoon Aging

Holding time – 18 months minimum after last
addition
4.Air-Drying


Agitation frequency – 3 to 4 times per week
Solids content – 60 percent minimum
PFRP Certification Requirements

Demonstrate compliance by testing 12 samples
per year for helminth ova & virus

Report data semi-annually

Annual PFRP compliance audit
Benefits

Cost of helminth & virus testing for each Project

Eliminates logistics associated with 4-6 wk
turnaround for helminth ova testing

Good PR
Lessons Learned
Good working relationship with state and
federal regulators
Establish good public relations program
Low tech processing trains very effective
in pathogen reduction
Lessons Learned
Codify PFRP-equivalent processing to allow
more operational flexibility
Modify processing trains by blending to with
other materials to address odors, salinity,
and excess nutrients
Air-drying and stockpiling subject to will of
“Mother Nature” and can severely affect
coordinating timing of production and demand
Questions