FPUD recycles sludge; sells it as high-grade soil amendment

FALLBROOK – Flushing a Fallbrook toilet has its environmental advantages: the sewage sludge that winds its way underground, to the Fallbrook Public Utility District’s (FPUD) sewage treatment plant, gets recycled. State-of-the-art machinery dries the sludge and then transforms it into an organic, Class A soil amendment.

The district then sells this renewable resource for a bargain price, $20 a ton. But as more toilets keep flushing, more of the safe amendment is produced, leaving the district with a surplus. It’s one of the downsides to going green, leaving FPUD looking for a few more buyers.

Buying the soil amendment is pretty simple. Anyone can go into the district office at 990 E. Mission Road, fill out some paperwork, pay the $20, then head to the treatment plant at 1425 Alturas Road and pick it up. There is a $25 refundable charge for a bag to transport it, but the bag is optional.

Anyone with a smaller truck can divide the load into two or more trips.

FPUD began the environmentally conscious process of recycling sludge into soil amendment in 2007 and has since received awards from the American Society of Civil Engineers and the American Public Works Association. The awards touted the merits of the project for its innovative, carbon-footprint reducing process, and building better communities as a result.

Sludge is the semisolid, slushy organic material that remains after wastewater is treated. The sludge is dewatered before it’s put into the dryer. Then by heating it to about 350 degrees Fahrenheit, all harmful pathogens are killed. The end product is sterile, nutrient-rich granules that can be safely returned to the soil.

The equipment is worth more than a million dollars, but FPUD will recoup the cost by not having to haul the heavy, wet sludge to a disposal site.