N-Viro Soil

N-Viro Soil is a product sold as fertilizer. It is made from sewage sludge by N-Viro International Corporation.

Production Process
According to the N-Viro International Corporation website:
 * "The N-Viro Process is a patented technology process for the treatment and recycling of bio-organic wastes, utilizing certain alkaline by-products produced by the cement, lime, electric utilities and other industries. To date, the N-Viro Process has been commercially utilized for the recycling of wastewater sludges from municipal wastewater treatment facilities. N-Viro Soil produced according to the N-Viro Process specifications is an "exceptional quality" sludge product under the Part 503 Regulations.


 * "The N-Viro Process involves mixing the wastewater sludge with an alkaline admixture and then subjecting the mixture to a controlled period of storage, mechanical turning and accelerated drying in which a blending of the sludge and the alkaline admixture occurs. The N-Viro Process stabilizes and pasteurizes the wastewater sludge, reduces odors to acceptable levels, neutralizes or immobilizes various toxic components and generates N-Viro Soil™, a product which has a granular appearance similar to soil and has multiple commercial uses. These uses include agricultural lime, soil enrichment, top soil blend, landfill cover and filter, and land reclamation.


 * "The alkaline admixture used in the N-Viro Process consists of by-product dusts from cement or lime kilns, certain fly ashes and other products of coal, coke or petroleum combustion and by-product dusts from sulfuric acid "scrubbers" used in acid rain remediation systems and from fluidized bed coal-fired systems used in electric power generation. The particular admixture that is used usually depends upon cost and availability in local markets. In certain cases, commercial lime may also be added to the admixture. We are a distributor of alkaline admixture and are responsible for quality control of the admixture."

Sales and Marketing
N-Viro Soil is marketed as a "bio-organic and mineral fertilizer" and recommended for use as landfill cover material, a topsoil blending ingredient, and for land reclamation projects. N-Viro Soil is typically purchased by the truckload.

Related SourceWatch articles

 * Biosolids
 * Sewage sludge
 * Food Rights Network
 * Sewage sludge giveaways, producers, and brands
 * The EPA's plan to bypass opposition to sewage sludge disposal
 * Water Environment Federation
 * You say biosolids, I say sewage sludge

External resources

 * Marie Kulick, Smart Guide on Sludge Use and Food Production, Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, 2008.
 * Targeted National Sewage Sludge Survey: EPA-822-R-08-016 and EPA-822-R-08-018, EPA, January 2009.
 * Environmental Working Group, Dumping Sewage Sludge On Organic Farms? Why USDA Should Just Say No, April, 1998.
 * Environmental Working Group, Routes of Exposure sewage sludge: EWG Research on Chemicals in sewage sludge, April 30, 1998.