LONDON - Sewage sludge is widely applied as fertiliser to agricultural land across the UK, yet the microplastics in this sludge pose a threat to human health and the environment, so today environmental consultancy, EcoCognito, called for urgent legislative action to prevent microplastic pollution from sewage sludge.
In 2023, the last year for which we could readily access data, water companies in England dispatched 819,001 tonnes (dry solids) of sewage sludge - 93.8% of which was applied to over 375,000 acres of agricultural land. The spreading of sewage sludge on farmland is also widespread across Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
Yet current environmental regulations specify this sewage sludge is tested only for potentially harmful heavy metals, with no requirement to routinely test the sludge for microplastics - this legislative gap means avoidable microplastic pollution...