Introduction 



Disposal of sewage sludge is rapidly becoming the major environmental 

 problem in New Hampshire. State and Federal regulations enacted during the 

 last decade require that all sewerage collection systems provide at least primary 

 treatment, and regulations further require most New Hampshire towns to initiate 

 plans for secondary treatment. Although the quantities of sludge thereby 

 produced by New Hampshire towns are relatively small when compared with 

 large cities of the U.S., its disposal presents significant problems to many 

 individual communities. 



Nationwide, many imaginative techniques for disposal of sewage sludge are 

 being developed. However, most of these disposal techniques are geared toward 

 large quantities of sludge. As such, they are too expensive for use by small New 

 Hampshire towns, many of which produce less sludge in a year than a 

 medium-size city produces in a day. Considering the amounts produced by most 

 towns and the relatively large areas of undeveloped land in the state, land 

 disposal of the sludge is probably the best disposal method. However, if sludge is 

 to be placed on the land, it is paramount that its impact on the plant and animal 

 (including human) community is considered. 



The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency requires that sludge be disposed 

 in a manner that does not present a human health hazard, with primary concern 

 being on disease-causing organisms. These organisms can usually be destroyed by 

 proper pretreatment and disposal techniques. The inorganic constituents of 

 sludge present a less obvious, but potentially more dangerous hazard to plant 

 and animal life, as well as to human health. Certain potentially toxic elements 

 may build up in the soil, and be taken up by plants in quantities toxic to the 

 plant or to animals feeding on the plant. Conversely, some elements may leach 

 into groundwater supplies, an equally undesirable situation. 



Since little information was available concerning the inorganic constituents 

 of New Hampshire sludges, a survey of the materials conducted as a preliminary 

 step to possible development of on-land disposal techniques. 



