AN EVALUATION OF BIOSOLIDS MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES: SELECTING AN EFFECTIVE APPROACH TO AN UNCERTAIN FUTURE

EBMUD undertook a biosolids master planning effort to address the need for a comprehensive biosolids management plan that would address issues of cost, liability, flexibility and reliability. The current, cost-effective agricultural land application program faces possible future political and regulatory challenges, and available alternatives require large capital expenditures and significant lead time.The goal of the master planning effort was to develop specific, executable management strategies for a 10-year horizon, in the context of changing costs and regulations. Available technologies were screened to produce a short-list of technologies and strategies for detailed evaluation. This paper discusses the evaluation of available biosolids processing technologies, including quantitative criteria such as footprint and cost and qualitative criteria such as public acceptance and agency liability. A weighted matrix approach based on both quantitative and qualitative criteria was used to assess potential future strategies.