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PROJECT SUMMARY
Owner: Granville Township, Mifflin
County
Project: Large scale vermiculture of
wastewater biosolids
About Granville Township:
Granville Township is a Second Class
Township in a rural setting, providing service to a
population of 4,895.
The Township has two wastewater
treatment facilities, which also service neighboring
municipalities of Oliver Township and Juniata Terrace
Borough, thereby serving three individual communities.
There are 30 miles of sewers and seven pumping stations.
As little as twenty years ago,
Granville had no sewerage or treatment at all. The
Supervisors and management of the Township are proud of
their record and commitment to stewardship and
protection of the environment.
This progress has been made despite
the Township having many homeowners who are on fixed
income. The Per Capita income for residents in Granville
Township base on 2000 census is $16,807, which is $4,073
below the state average.
Characteristics of the Project:
Biosolids are the solids by-product
of wastewater treatment. They are widely accepted as
offering a valuable potential source of all natural
nutrient and soil building properties, although much of
this material is also disposed of to landfill.
Traditionally, Granville has sent its
wastewater biosolids to the landfill. Up to 25% of
Pennsylvania’s biosolids are disposed of in this way.
This is a waste of potential valuable resource.
When it was announced in 2000 that
the Mifflin County landfill was closing, Granville
looked around for a new solution that would enable the
biosolids to be recycled for beneficial use.
The Township researched a number of
options (including trucking to a distant landfill) and
decided to pursue an option involving large-scale
vermiculture.
This innovative technology, in which
the waste is fed to earthworms housed in large beds, is
new to biosolids treatment in the USA and offered the
best mix of environmental, recycling and financial
outcomes for the Township.
Objectives of the Project
The objectives of the project were:
To find a recycling
alternative that could make use of this
potential resource instead of using it to fill
up landfills.
To recycle local waste
streams for local benefit by transforming waste
into a "value-added", attractive end product
that can be used to improve soil, turf and crops
for local farms and businesses.
To use a technology that
operates with a low environmental impact and
does not expend natural resources and make noise
or dust or odor
To be first in the USA with
an innovative technology that will one day be
commonplace across the country
To benefit the education and
co-operation of the Community by having a
facility that can be visited by schoolchildren
and college students wishing to learn about
environmental recycling
To foster unity among a
number of government agencies (such as DEP, who
played a major role), politicians, legislators,
private companies and members of the community
united in a common goal to try and make a real
difference to the environment
To seek a cost effective
solution that would offer the chance to sell the
end product. Since there is no such thing as
"green charity", the project would have to make
economic sense in its own right.
Benefits and Outstanding Attributes
The facility, which will treat all of
the Township’s biosolids will convert the biosolids into
environmentally safe and aesthetically pleasing end
product which the Township is selling for up to $100 per
ton. The facility met the requirements for permitting as
producing an Exceptional Quality (Class A) biosolids
product under DEP regulation permit issues February 23rd
2005. To date approximately 20 tons were produced and
sold to commercial establishment as soil amendment to
poor or none productive soils.
Financially, the facility is
comparable in direct costs with other technology
options. Taking the long-term view, the Township is
fully expecting that the treatment costs will be offset
by the sale of end product, potentially capping and
minimizing biosolids management costs on a permanent
basis. It will also create employment opportunities for
present and future generations.
The environmental benefits are as
follows
The process accepts 100% of
the Township biosolids, eliminating the
possibility of it from ever causing pollution
elsewhere.
Since the worms require no
energy to do their work, the process reduces
energy consumption over other methods by up to
80%.
University research has shown
the process reduces greenhouse gas
emissions by up to 45% over landfill practices.
The facility produces
absolutely minimal odor, dust, noise or
leachate.
The process reduces the
volume of material by 40% from input to outputs.
Public Interest
Up to 25% of biosolids in the State
are sent to landfill where they occupy space and add to
greenhouse gas emissions.
Waste streams are generated at a
local level. In transporting to a landfill, the waste is
carried over long distances, increasing traffic on the
roads, using fuel, energy and creating an unsafe
environmental condition.
At the same time, modern farming
techniques put increasing pressure on the land and soil
health. Inorganic fertilizers add little back to the
soil in terms of soil vitality and beneficial microbes
and their long-term use has had negative effects on
groundwater quality.
So, by treating and re-using a local
waste stream, this facility presents, in its own right,
an opportunity to make a difference to the long-term
public interest and to the environment.
However, more importantly, this
project will act as an example of how local solutions
can be created for local problems.
Although industrialized, the process
involves worms which "mimic" what is happening everyday
in nature, in the forests and fields, as part of a
natural cycle. These types of natural, low-tech and
low-impact solutions offer important long-term options
for the community.
More specifically, residents of
Granville will have their biosolids treated and recycled
and the costs of doing so will be partly offset by sales
of end-product. The intention of this facility is to
reduce costs for the township permanently.
Community and Agency involvement
The project involved local businesses
that were involved in the financing, delivery, building
and installation of the facility. Although the process
equipment was delivered from Australia, local engineers
designed the facility and local contractors carried out
most of the work. Employees of Granville Township were
essential to the specific layout and design of the
facility.
In order to keep costs down, all
members of the Township staff, from the office to road
crew picked up a spanner and joined in to help erect and
install the equipment. Despite being held up by a long
winter, the equipment was installed in record time and
with no major hold ups. Since this was the first
facility in the USA, this was quite an achievement. The
Township Supervisors thank their team for their
professionalism, strength and spirit.
The Township also enjoyed the support
of DEP via grant funding from the "Growing Greener"
program. DEP staff has also provided support and
guidance for the Township in all parts of the process.
The facility is intended to achieve permitting for EQ
biosolids product in early 2005. This process is being
conducted through a constructive and co-operative
relationship that has been established with DEP
officers.
As well as DEP, PennVest and other
State agencies have also been critical in getting the
project up and running and their support has been most
valuable.
Community Education and support
The facility is currently in the
final stages of being commissioned. Already though,
students and teachers from local schools and college
have taken keen interest, with their curriculum calling
for projects about recycling and large-scale
vermiculture. The process of education has begun…. Local
organization has been tours of the facility along with
power point presentation. Local schools requested the
local government to attended classes with power point
presentation to future educate grades 3rd
thru 12 .
The Township has plans to offer
educational visits to the facility and has the intention
to link up with researchers and Penn State University to
conduct further research to explore the benefits of the
end product for local soils.
During recent "Open House" days, more
than 250 citizens and members of other local
municipalities have attended to see and hear about the
innovative technology. Other visitors have included the
Secretary of DEP, Senators, Congressman and
Representatives.
Innovative Technology (please see
attached literature)
In building this facility, Granville
Township employed the services of Vermitech, an
Australian company that has several years experience in
treating biosolids using large-scale vermiculture.
Vermiculture is a natural and
efficient method of processing waste using earthworms
and on a small scale is very common in homes and
schools. Large-scale vermiculture involves the use of
hundreds of thousands of earthworms to process very
large quantities of waste and convert it into high
quality all natural soil amendment.
Essentially, all natural waste is fed
to the top of the bed using a specialist piece of
equipment, worms rise up to meet the material and in
doing so, eat the waste and imbue it with a vast array
of soil beneficial microbes and fungi. More material is
regularly added to the top of the bed and processed
"harvest" is taken from the bottom using another
machine. The finished product is dried and screened to
the desired size and is then, subject to DEP permitting,
intended to be sold for high value into commercial turf
and horticulture applications.
The technology is innovative in that
it is the first of its type in the USA. Further, the
technology uses very little energy and reduces waste
volumes in a low impact and natural way. The process is
robust and simple and in this regard it offers an
exciting and innovative way to deal with all natural
waste streams such as biosolids and manures.
Project Cost
Total project cost is estimated at
around $1,200,000, including $478,000 in Growing Greener
grant funds, over $100,000 in local funds and loan
assistance from PennVest making up the difference.
The total estimated dollar savings
per wet ton is approximately $35,000 annually, or
approximately $16 per household per year.
With the sale of end product to local
outlets, the Township expects to be able to permanently
maintain low biosolids management costs. The product has
been sold to commercial establishment such as golf
courses, sod farmer, tree farmer and grape vineyards.
Larry E. Craig
Granville Twp. Sewer Manager
** information
provided by Larry E. Craig, Granville Township Sewer &
Water
Print additional information about treating biosolids
and organic waste with earthworms.
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