Oak Bay News: Published: November 16, 2009 5:00 PM
Concern over environmental damage from spreading sewage sludge on land helped delay a decision on what to with Greater Victoria’s biosolids, as the region fine tunes its plans for a sewage treatment system. Politicians on the Capital Regional District’s core-area liquid waste management looked over a consultant’s report that recommended a mix of uses, including selling dried sludge to fuel cement kilns, as well as for use as dried fertilizer, top soil and for reclaiming mines. It also suggests building a plant at the Hartland landfill that would produce electricity by burning dried sludge and garbage.
But the prospect of spreading sewage on dry land, even after treatment and composting, shouldn’t be on the table, Victoria Coun. Philippe Lucas argued. “I have some discomfort that we’re overestimating benefits and underestimating problems,” he said. Lucas added that the treated sludge will be still be laden with heavy metals and cancer-causing chemicals that mimic human hormones and interfere with normal development. Consultant Steve Krugel, with the firm Brown and Caldwell, acknowledged that sludge contains some hazardous substances, but said it’s being used safely in land applications across North America and Europe. Other committee members voiced other concerns with the proposals before voting to delay a decision.
Esquimalt Mayor Barb Desjardins said a decision shouldn’t be made without knowing how much carbon will be produced from trucking the sludge and what the Hartland energy plant would cost. The committee will meet Wednesday (Nov. 18) to make a decision.
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