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Page 4/The Battalion/Monday, December 5, 1983
Local sewage useful
in replenishing soil
by Brian Boyer
Battalion Staff
Bryan-College Station resi
dents may not realize it, but they
produce sewage they can be
proud of. According to a Texas
A&M graduate student, local
sewage sludge can be used to re
plenish depleted soil and enrich
its ability to support crops.
The sludge is suitable due to
the lack of heavy metals in the
material, says William Hornby,
who is working on a master’s de
gree in soil and crop sciences.
Some communities nave heavy
metals in their sewage due to in
dustrial waste.
What local sewage sludge
does have, Hornby says, is orga
nic matter that can enrich soil
and improve its water-holding
capacity. Hornby says his re
search has shown that sewage
sludge can replenish soil faster
than conventional methods.
Environmental laws require
that strip-mined land be re
claimed, or returned to its ori
ginal state. This means that min
ing companies must replenish
the soil so it is at least as fertile as
it was before the mining opera
tion started.
In Texas, strip-mined soil is
leveled and treated with chemic
al fertilizers. It is then planted
with rye or bermuda grass and
covered with mulched hay to re
tain moisture and rebuild the
soil’s organic content.
The sludge process bypasses
this Final step and replenishes
the organic content much faster,
Hornby says. Since soil unco
vered by strip mining is clay and
tends to clump together, the
organic content is critical to
make the soil hold water and
allow plants to grow. While this
method has been used in other
states, Hornby says, it has never
been done before in Texas.
Hornby maintains test plots
using conventional reclamation
methods and others using
varying amounts of sludge, and
has documented the results with
photographs. The test plots tre
ated with sludge show signifi
cantly more growth than plots
THE UNDERGROUND
SBISA BASEMENT
Dry Roasted Peanuts
Dec. 5 - Dec. 9
8 oz for $1.59
Offer Good to the last Jar
“The Best Food. The Lowest Price.’
treated with conventional che
mical means.
Hornby is also testing the
sludge-enriched overburden in
an incubated laboratory project
to test its performance under
ideal conditions.
The Environmental Protec
tion Agency agrees with Horn
by’s Findings. According to an
EPA study, which used testing
conditions similar to Hornby’s,
the process can reclaim mined
land with no adverse effects on
the environment.
A test conducted by the Ten
nessee Valley Authority over a
three-year period is also en
couraging. They found that “the
heavy rates of municipal com
post (sewage sludge) applied in
these tests produced no toxic
symptoms during four years of
observation, and resulted in an
impressive development of
vegetation.”
There are some problems
with the sludge, however. It
needs to be tested constantly to
make sure no industrial wastes
have introduced harmful subst
ances. It can be a health hazard,
since various diseases thrive in
the material. It can also be incon
- x * 'A \ ' && A
*
|llg :
Wmi
General Meeting
MSC Political Forum
Tuesday, Dec. 6, 1983
7:30 p.m. 510 Rudder
This will be the last meeting of the semester.
All members are encouraged to attend.
We’ve ^"T^Hlanes
outgrown
venient to transport.
These problems can be over
come, but the biggest obstacle,
Hornby says, is likely to be public
opinion.
“People generally say ‘Sure, as
long as it’s not in my backyard’”
in response to the plan, Hornby
says.
The City of Bryan now
dumps its sewage sludge in a
sanitary landfill, according to
waste treatment operator Fred
dy Walker. This is not the best
method for dealing with the
sludge, which can pollute
groundwater with dangerous
levels of nitrates when large
amounts accumulate in one
place.
Local children gaze as bands, clowns, floats
and cars decorated in the Christmas spirit,
during the Bryan-College Station Chamber of
More Christmas card design entrants needed
CHECK THE
r
cmssiriEDS
For All
Your Needs
by Debbie E. Warren
Battalion Rtportar
Marci Rodgers received 29
Christmas cards before Thank
sgiving last year, but this year
she wasn’t so popular.
Rodgers is in charge of the
College Station Christmas card
contest. The deadline for the
contest passed almost two weeks
ago with only two entries.
Rodgers says the deadline for
entries has been extended to
Wednesday in hopes that more
people will enter.
“Last year we had so many
good entries,” Rodgers says. “I
don’t know what happened this
year. We have advertised with
the schools so maybe some other
art classes will enter.”
This is the second year for the
contest, in which 8 foot by 10
foot yuletide cards are painted
by contestants on plywood
panels.
Rodgers says entrants must
submit samples of their card de
signs on 6 inch by 12 inch post-
erboard. Samples have to be
turned in no later than Wednes
day to the Parks and Recreation
Department office in Central
Park.
Contestants should pul their
name, address and phone num
ber on the back of the cards.
Groups or individuals of all ages
may enter.
“Three judges will decide
which cards are the best based
on design concept, originality
and execution,” Rodgers says.
“Ten winners will be chosen, all
of which will then pick up the
wood panels and paint their de
signs onto them. They will re
turn the cards back to us by Dec.
15.”
Rodgers says the cards will be
judged again after the giant
panels are painted. The top
three winners will get prizes of
$75, $50 and $25.
“This is the first year we have
had cash prizes/’ she says.
“Hopefully this will cover some
of the cost to the contestant for
paint and so forth and just add a
little incentive.”
Rodgers says the plywood
anels have been donated by a
ocal lumber company, but con-
: ** «*• * v- j, «• . ■ .
local lumuei co..,p-..y, uuj The cards wiIi ^ disp i aye d in
testants will be responsible for front of Lhe Co „ cgc StaVion City
all paint and other materials. Hal , and the Community Center
after they are finished.
Charles P. Dungan, BaM
“We got a l ot
spouse from t ^ ecal i |(( ji
Rodgers says. “Peop"* 15
J
years.
ir a drive-thru lanes
We’ve outgr ^l n thanks to you.
in college Sf' on new (aneS and *
'^ollegeStatoa =esanda
We now 12 e i U st for you.
commercial Ian ,1 bujldjng a t Texas
square f ® e ^ a ° ngs°aTId °oan services.
Sew’ ^inconvenience. Soon
SStosBanc Sav ™ S _
, Brazof
nil-VOU-CAN-
UNCH BUNCH
Grace Biblo Clturcb Youtb Group Will Be Serving
One Piece Of Sausage And All The Hotcakes You Canftt
Cdme in aiw Join mi
Monday, December 5, 5;80-8:00p.m.
O TMdlMcDonaldiCorporation 825 Vife Maitfl fM., Bfyan
AH procMds wBi be donated to Grace Bible Churcft