Washington-The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has given a boost to the use of biosolids and manure. According to agency officials, compost and fertilizer made from the recycled material have been added to the comprehensive procurement guidelines landscaping products category. Under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), federal, state, and local procurement officials must follow these guidelines if they spend more than $10,000 buying landscaping products. In addition, these products must be from recovered materials. For example, if a county agency spends more than $10,000 a year on an EPA-designated item and part of that money is from appropriated federal funds, then the agency must purchase that item made from recovered materials. EPA is expanding the description of “compost” from yard trimmings and food waste to include compost from biosolids and manure, but does not limit the designation to specific types of organic materials. In addition, EPA has added fertilizer made from recovered materials as a designated landscaping item. EPA officials say the guidelines allow the agency to harness the purchasing power of the federal government to foster and support markets for recycled-content products, thereby reducing the need for raw materials, consumption of energy, and the release of greenhouse gas emissions. The rule should be published in the Federal Register within the next two weeks.
Transparency Across the Fertilizer Value-Chain