Can worldwide examples give NZ biosolids beneficial use wings?

Despite encouragement through the MfE Waste Strategy (2002), t he Waste Minimisation Bill (200 8), The Guidelines for the Safe Application of Biosolids to Land in New Zealand (2003), and several specific Regional Rules, promulgation of biosolids application to land continues to be a hard -fought battle, with few outright successes.

This paper will examine global case studies sourced from the WEF Biosolids and Residuals Conference, held in Portland in May 2009, and compare and contrast these seemingly successful beneficial use systems with the handful of beneficial use systems and recently acquired consents currently operative in New Zealand. We’ll look at the latest innovations that are coming through on the world stage , examining their merits in terms of advancing the abilities of Councils and Biosolids producers to more easily engage in beneficial use .

From these issues and case studies both here and abroad , we develop some simple “do’s” based on the commonalities of successful systems, and similarly, a list of “don’ts” that have been discovered through efforts worldwide. These lists will assess a broad array of issues worth taking into account when assessing potential reuse options, including the current philosophical, scientific, and political and market climates.