Milorganite
a biosolsolids fertalizer where wastewater is captured from the Milwaukee metropolitan area, including
local industries. This water is then treated at the Jones Island Water
Reclamation Facility in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
with microbes to digest nutrients that are found in it. Cleaned water is then
returned to Lake Michigan. The recycled
product, high nitrogen fertilizer, is sold throughout the world, reduces the need
for manufactured nutrients, and after more than 75 years is one of the largest
and most continuous examples of such programs
History
Milorganite’s history 'began with Milwaukee’s goal to clean up its rivers and Lake Michigan." Rather than land filling sludge or microorganisms, they were used in a pioneering effort to make, distribute and sell fertilizer. "Its production is among the largest recycling programs in the world."The Jones Island Plant was among the first sewage treatment plants in the United States to succeed in using the activated sludge treatment process. "It was the first treatment facility to economically dispose of the recovered sludge by producing an organic fertilizer." In the early 1980s the plant needed extensive reworking, "this does not detract from its historic significance as a pioneering facility in the field of pollution control technology." "The world’s first large scale wastewater treatment plant was constructed on Jones Island, near the shore of Lake Michigan." It had the largest capacity of any plant in the world when constructed. The 1925 plant has been designated as a Historic Civil Engineering Landmark by the American Society of Civil Engineers.
The name Milorganite is a concatenation of the phrase Milwaukee Organic Nitrogen, and was the result of a 1925 naming contest held in National Fertilizer Magazine. Raising taxes for public health was relatively controversial in the early 1900s. In 1911, reform minded socialists were elected on a platform calling for construction of a wastewater treatment plant to protect against water borne pathogens. Experiments showed that heat dried activated sludge pellets "compared favorably with standard organic materials such as dried blood, tankage, fish scap, and cottonseed meal." Sales to golf courses, turf farms and flower growers began in 1926. Milorganite was popularized during the 1930s and 1940s before inorganic urea became available to homeowners after WWII. With the help of researchers in the College of Agriculture at the University of Wisconsin, the use of waste solids (i.e., activated sludge) as a source of fertilizer was first developed in the early 20th century.
Since its development in 1926 as the first pelletized fertilizer in the United States, Milorganite has sold over 9,000,000,000 pounds (4.1×109 kg) of recycled waste. As of 2012, the plant produced about 45,000 tons from decayed bacteria per year. In combining concerns for the environment and social justice, while successfully navigating the fluctuations and vagaries of the changing waste stream to deliver an important product through recycling, Milorganite has been at the forefront of the industry, even as it struggles with the inherent contradictions in its mission.
As the organization itself notes:
"Headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Milorganite products are manufactured and marketed by the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD), a regional government agency whose primary focus is providing water reclamation and flood management services for about 1.1 million customers in 28 communities in the Greater Milwaukee Area. Since 1926 MMSD has been a world leader in supplying Organic Nitrogen fertilizers for professional and residential use. While revenue generated through the sale of Milorganite products does not make up for the entire cost to produce and market, our belief in beneficial reuse and recycling makes producing our value added products the clear choice."
The sale of product does not entirely generate sufficient funds to cover the costs of manufacture, but the organization suggests the environmental benefits are a legitimate offsetting consideration.
Product
Heat dried biosolids contain slow release organic nitrogen, largely water insoluble phosphorus bound with iron and aluminum and high organic matter. Milorganite releases 85% of its nitrogen slowly as turf grows, generating balanced growth. Milorganite’s 4% Iron enhances turf's color throughout the 8-10 week application period Milorganite is sold throughout the United States, Canada, and the Caribbean as a golf course and home lawn and garden fertilizer.Surviving pathogens are unlikely and daily tests confirm the absence of pathogens. The Milorganite program is one of the world’s largest recycling efforts; the low impact formulation was designed to recycle valuable nutrients for use on turf and gardens, reducing the need for manufactured nutrients or mined materials for fertilization. Milorganite contains virtually no salts, so it never burns plants – even in the hottest temperatures and driest conditions. It may be applied without water, and is moisture activated at a later time. Each application feeds for 8–10 weeks, resulting in fewer applications.
Milorganite can be used without restriction on gardens intended for human consumption under USEPA rules. There are concerns about contaminants, including waste pharmaceuticals, drug pollution, metals, etc. To alleviate those concerns, Milorganite is tested regularly, more often than is required by governmental regulations. According to the Material safety data sheet it is "registered for sale in all 50 states and meets all federal and state requirements."
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) certifies milorganite as a biobased product because it is derived from renewable materials. While the product bills itself as "organic", its use is not permitted in U.S.D.A. certified organic farms.
University research confirms anecdotal evidence that applying Milorganite on lawns and near plants deters deer due to its odor. However, the manufacturer cannot market Milorganite as a deer repellent because it is not registered as a "pesticide. The size of the expenditure and the lack of a guaranteed return on investment and its timing was deemed to make the venture not worth it. Therefore, repelling hungry deer from Hostas remains an "off-label" use. Milorganite is tested daily for the presence of heavy metals and pathogens. Milorganite surpasses the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) "Exceptional Quality" criteria, which establishes the strictest concentration limits in the fertilizer industry for heavy metals, allowing Milorganite to be used on food crops. Milorganite is also certified by the USDA as a bio-based product since it is derived from renewable materials. The EPA's "Exceptional Quality" criteria was changed significantly, allowing for a higher levels of toxins. Lead, for example was raised from 111 to 267 pounds per acre. Arsenic was raised from 12.5 to 36 pounds per acre. Mercury from 13.4 to 50 pounds per acre, and chromium from 472 to 2,672. This allowed fertilizer of this type to be more widely accepted and used.
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