Office of
Wastewater Management
(4203)
Sludge Use or Disposal Regulations Fact Sheet Series
The National Sewage
Sludge Program
Legal Authority
As mandated by the Clean Water Act
of 1987, EPA has issued national standards
regulating the use or disposal of sewage
sludge. These standards, promulgated in 40
CFR Pan 503, in conjunction with the
permitting requirements established in 40
CFR Parts 122, 123, and 501, make up the
regulatory framework of the National
Sewage Sludge Program.
Who is Regulated?
Part 503 generally regulates treaters
and preparers of sewage sludge that will be
land applied, incinerated, or placed on a
surface disposal site, as well as the
generators and end users or disposers of the
sewage sludge.
What is Regulated?
The National Sewage Sludge Program
generally regulates all sewage sludge that is
used or disposed through land application,
surface disposal, or incineration.
What is sewage sludge?
Sewage sludge is defined as a "solid,
semi-solid, or liquid residue generated
during the treatment of domestic sewage in
. a treatment works. Sewage sludge includes,
but is not limited to, domestic septage; scum
or solids removed in primary, secondary, or
advanced wastewater treatment processes;
and material derived from sewage sludge."
(Materials derived from sewage sludge
include the products of sludge composters
and digesters, treated sewage sludge which
is bagged for sale as fertilizer, or any other
type of processed or treated sewage sludge
which is land applied, incinerated, or placed
in a surface disposal site.) "Sewage sludge
does not include ash generated during the
firing of sewage sludge in a sewage sludge
incinerator or grit and screenings generated
during the preliminary treatment of domestic
sewage hi a treatment works." (§503.9(w))
Domestic septage is also regulated by
Pan 503. Domestic septage is "liquid or
solid material removed from a septic tank,
cesspool, portable toilet, Type in marine
sanitation device, or similar treatment works
that receives only domestic sewage..."
(§503.9(f))
Currently excluded from regulation
under Pan 503 are industrial sludge and
septage from industrial or commercial
facilities. Generally, sludge generated at an
industrial facility is not regulated by Pan
503. However, if the domestic wastewater
is segregated from the process water, the
sewage sludge generated by the treatment of
the domestic wastewater is covered by Pan
503.
•~/f you worn with
fj /• f J-
Aewaae iludae I including
domestic ieptaye/ you are
prooaouj regulated oy the
rjationai Sewage
a
ludae f^roararn.
Sludges classified as hazardous and
sludges containing 50 mg/kg or more
polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are also
not regulated in Pan 503, but are subject to
other regulatory requirements.
When is Compliance
Required?
Deadlines for compliance with Pan 503
regulations were established in the Clean
Water Act of 1987. In most cases, Part 503
is a "self-implementing" regulation; it is
directly enforceable even in the absence of
a permit. Pan 503 requires compliance with
the monitoring and recordkeeping
requirements (except for monitoring of total
hydrocarbon emissions in incinerator exit
gases) by July 20, 1993. Pan 503 requires
compliance with all other standards as soon
as possible, but no later than February 19,
Updated August 1994
1994 (or February 19, 1995, if construction
of a pollution control facility is required to
comply with the regulation). Currently,
there are no compliance deadlines for the
THC Standard and Monitoring requirements
in the absence of direction by a permitting
authority. EPA plans to establish these
compliance deadlines in a future rule
making.
Permits: Who Applies for
One, and Who Doesn't?
Section 405(f) of the Clean Water Act
requires National Pollutant Discharge
Elimination System (NPDES) permits issued
to publicly owned treatment works and other
treatment works treating domestic sewage to
contain conditions implementing Pan 503.
EPA has defined treatment works treating
domestic sewage to be "a [publicly owned
treatment works] or any other sewage sludge
or wastewater treatment devices or systems,
regardless of ownership (including federal
facilities) used in the storage, treatment,
recycling, or reclamation of municipal or
domestic sewage, including land dedicated
for the disposal of sewage sludge. This
definition does not include septic tanks or
similar devices ... In States where there is
no approved State sludge management
program... the Regional Administrator may
designate any person subject to the standards
for sewage sludge use and disposal in 40
CFR Part 503 as a 'treatment works
treating domestic sewage,' ... when he or
she finds that such designation is necessary
to ensure that such person is in compliance
with 40 CFR Part 503" (§122.2).
Important Notice:
Compliance is required by
the dates above,
regardless of whether a
permit has been issued.
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Sludge Use or Disposal Regulations Fact Sheet Series
Updated August 1994
Practices and
Materials Not
Regulated by
40 CFR Part 503
• Non-hazardous industrial sludge
(Part 257)
• Drinking water treatment sludge
• Industrial sludge generated at
an industrial facility by
treatment of sanitary
wastewatar mixed with process
waste water (Part 257*}
• Hazardous sludge (Parts 261-
2B8*
• Sludge containing 50 mg/kg or
more of potychlorinated
biphenyte (PCBs) (Part 761}
• Sewage sludge co-incinerated
with more than 30% municipal
solid waste (Part 60) :
» Sewage sludge incinerator ash
* Grit and screenings removed
during the preliminary treatment
of domestic sewage m a
treatment works
• Sewage sludge ultimately used
as a feed supplement for
animals
* Thermal conversion of sewage
sludge to oil which is used to
generate steam and electricity
• Use of shidge slag as concrete
aggregate* for road subbase, in
making pavement blocks, or as
raw material to produce other
building materials
• Use of sludge in concrete and
bituminous: mixes
•••* Commercial or industrial
septage, or any mixture of
commercial and/or industrial
septage with domestic septage
* Septage disposed of at • POTW
or other treatment works
8 Practices which may be
regulated by the National
Sewage Sludge Program in the
future.
Under this definition, facilities which
must apply for a permit include the
generators, treaters, and disposers of sewage
sludge. All generators of sewage sludge
that will be land applied, incinerated, placed
in a surface disposal site, or sent to a
municipal solid waste landfill, will need to
apply for a permit. Also, all persons who
change the quality (i.e., change the pathogen
level, the vector attraction characteristics, or
the pollutant concentration) of sewage sludge
that will be land applied, incinerated, or
placed in a surface disposal site, will need
to apply for a permit.
For example, a composting facility
would be required to apply for a permit,
because composting reduces the level of
pathogens in the sewage sludge. On the
other hand, a facility that only dewaters
sewage sludge is not considered to be
changing sludge quality and, therefore,
would not need to apply for a permit.
Surface disposal facilities and sewage
sludge incinerators will also need to apply
for a permit. Land appliers who do not
generate or change the quality of the sewage
sludge will not need to apply for a permit.
Septic tanks and similar devices, such
as portable toilets, are excluded from the
definition of treatment works treating
domestic sewage. Domestic septage
pumpers, haulers, treaters, and land appliers
will generally not need to apply for a
permit. However, centralized septage
treatment facilities may be required to apply
for a permit.
When Are Permit
Applications Due?
Facilities seeking site-specific permit
limits (as authorized by Pan 503) must
submit permit applications within 180 days
after publication of Part 503 (August 18,
1993). All sewage sludge incinerators will
be required to submit applications for site-
specific permits limits. Any surface
disposal facility may request site-specific
permit limits.
Facilities must request site-specific
permit limits during the initial 180-day
period, and may not be allowed to request
them later, unless the applicant can show
"good cause" exists (e.g., a change in
disposal practice or a new site that could not
be anticipated during the initial 180-day
period).
Other facilities which already have
NPDES permits must file sewage sludge
application information with the sludge
permitting authority at the time of their next
NPDES permit renewal application.
Facilities which do not have NPDES
permits are referred to as "sludge-only"
facilities. These facilities may include
composting facilities, non-discharging
sewage treatment plants and other facilities
which generate, treat, or dispose of sewage
sludge but do not have NPDES permits. If
these facilities are required to (or want to)
apply for site-specific permit limits, they
must submit permit applications within the
180-day period described above. Otherwise,
these facilities will be required to submit
limited permit application information by
February 19, 1995.
Who is the Permitting
Authority?
In most cases the Permitting Authority
will be the EPA Regional Office. EPA is
working with State agencies in the
development of approved State programs to
administer the Federal sewage sludge
regulations. Contact your EPA Regional
Sludge Coordinator (listed on the back of
this fact sheet) for more information on the
Permitting Authority or permit applications.
Pollutants with
Numeric Limits
Land Application
arsenic cadmium chromium
copper lead mercury
nickel selenium zinc
molybdenum
Unlined Surface Disposal Sites
arsenic cadmium nickel
Lined Surface Disposal Sites
none
Sewage Sludge Incinerators
lead cadmium chromium
nickel mercury beryllium
total hydrocarbons (a surrogate for
organic compounds in the exit gas)
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Sludge Use or Disposal Regulations Fact Sheet Series
Updated August 1994
Regulated Use and
Disposal Practices
Land Application
Land application is defined as "the
spraying or spreading of sewage sludge onto
the land surface; the injection of sewage
sludge below the land surface; or the
incorporation of sewage sludge into the soil
so that sewage sludge can either condition
the soil or fertilize crops or vegetation
grown in the soil" (§503.11(h)). Examples
are: use at reclamation sites as a soil
conditioner; use by sod farms; and the
distribution of sludge as a commercial
fertilizer.
Surface Disposal
A surface disposal site is an area which
contains one or more "sewage sludge units,"
where only sewage sludge is placed for final
disposal. This term does not include
municipal solid waste landfills that accept
sewage sludge. Furthermore, this does not
include land on which sewage sludge is
placed for either storage or treatment
(§503.21 (n) and (p)).
As a rule of thumb, storage is
placement of sludge on a site for up to 2
years. If sewage sludge is stored for more
than 2 years, then a rationale supporting the
need for the additional time should be
submitted to the permitting authority. For
more information on storage, call your EPA
Regional Sludge Coordinator.
Disposal in a municipal solid waste
landfill (MSWLF) is not considered surface
disposal. A generator who sends sewage
sludge to a MSWLF needs to apply for a
permit, but the MSWLF is not regulated by
the National Sewage Sludge Program.
Examples of surface disposal include
disposal in a sewage sludge monofill and the
trenching of septage.
Incineration
Incineration is defined as the
combustion of the organic matter and
inorganic matter in sewage sludge at high
temperatures in an enclosed device that fires
only sewage sludge and an auxiliary fuel.
The auxiliary fuel can include, but is not
limited to, natural gas, fuel oil, coal, and
municipal solid waste. Municipal solid
waste can be up to 30% of the combined dry
weight of the sewage sludge and the
municipal solid waste. Hazardous waste is
not considered an auxiliary fuel (§503.41(b),
(g) and (k)).
Are You Regulated by
The National Sewage Sludge Program?
Yes -» You are regulated and will need
to apply for a permit.
Yes -* You will need to apply for a
permit. However, the municipal
solid waste landfill is not
regulated by Part 503 and will
not need to apply for a permit.
Yes -* You are regulated and will need
to apply for a permit.
Are you a publicly owned treatment
works or other generator of sewage
sludge regulated by Part 503*?
No
I
Do you send sewage sludge to a
municipal solid waste landfill?
No
I
Are you an industrial facility which
separately treats domestic
wastewater and generates sewage
sludge regulated by Part 503*?
No
t
Do you change the quality t of
sewage sludge regulated by Part
503*?
No
I
Do you operate a sewage sludge
incinerator or a sewage sludge
surface disposal she?
No
I
Do you treat or dispose of pumpings
from septage tanks or similar
devices?
No
I
Do you just land apply sewage
sludge?
No
I
Do you just handle or distribute
sewage sludge?
No
I
You are probably not regulated by
the National Sewage Sludge
Program.
'Part 503 only regulates sewage sludge which is land applied, incinerated in a
sewage sludge incinerator, or placed in a surface disposal unit.
TTo change the sewage sludge quality means to alter one of the regulated sludge
quality criteria. The criteria are: pathogens, vector attraction characteristics, and
regulated organic and inorganic pollutants.
Yes -» You are regulated and will need
to apply for a permit.
Yes -* You are regulated and will need
to apply for a permit.
Yes -» You are regulated, but generally
do not need to apply for a permit.
However, if you treat septage at
a centralized facility, you may be
required to apply for a permit.
Yes -» You are regulated, but generally
do not need to apply for a permit.
Yes -» You may be subject to some
aspects of the National Sewage
Sludge Program, but generally do
not need to apply for a permit.
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Sludge Use or Disposal Regulations Fact Sheet Series
Updated August 1994
Publication Sources
us EPA
Office of Water Resource Center
OWRC
RC-4100
401 M Street, SW
Washington, DC 20460
Tele: (202)260-7786
US EPA
Education Resources Information Center
(ERIC/CSMEE)
1929 Kenny Road
Columbus, OH 43210-1080
Tele: (614) 292-6717
Fax: (614)292-0263
(800) 276-0462
US EPA
Center for Environmental Research
Institute (CERT)
P.O. Box 19963
Cincinnati, OH 45219-7562
Tele: (513) 569-7562
Fax: (513)569-7566
National Technical Information Service:
NTIS
U.S. Department of Commerce
5285 Port Royal Rd.
Springfield, VA 22161
Tele: (703) 487^650
(800) 553-6847
National Small Flows Clearinghouse:
NSFC
c/o West Virginia University
P.O. Box 6064
Morgantown, WV 26506-6064
Tele: (800) 624-8301
Federal Register Notices
Part 503 was published on February
19, 1993, at 58 Federal Register (FR) 9248.
Amendments to the National Sewage Sludge
Program permit application deadlines were
also published on February 19, 1993, at 58
FR 9404. Another amendment to Part 503
was published February 25,1994, at Federal
Register 59 (FR) 9095 for changes to the
molybdenum limits for land application and
the total hydrocarbons standard for sewage
sludge incinerators.
Most Federal Depository Libraries
receive copies of the Federal Register.
Many college, university, and public
libraries are Federal Repository Libraries.
Also check EPA Regional libraries.
Sludge Publications
Guidance Documents
Available from OWRC, FJUC, NSFC,
CERI and NTIS. All documents are
not available from all sources. Call
OWRC to determine best source for
specific information.
UNITED STATES MAP GOES HERE
UNDER DEVELOPMENT
EPA Regions
Regional Sludge Coordinators
REGION 1
Thelma Hamilton (WMS)
JFK Federal Bldg.
One Congress St.
Boston, MA 02203
Tele: (617) 565-3569
REGION 2
Alia Roufaeal
26 Federal Plaza
New York, NY 10278
Tele: (212) 264-8663
REGION 3
Ann Carkhuff
(3WM55)
841 Chestnut St.
Philadelphia, PA 19107
Tele: (215) 597-9406
REGION 4
Vince Miller
345 Courtland St. N.E.
Atlanta, GA 30365
Tele: (404) 347-3012 x2953
REGION 5
Ash Sajjad
(5WQP - 16J)
77 W. Jackson Blvd.
Chicago, IL 60604-3590
Tele: (312) 886-6112
REGION 6
Stephanie Kordzi
(6W-PM)
1445 Ross Ave #1200
Dallas, TX 75202-2733
Tele: (214) 665-7520
REGION 7
John Dunn
726 Minnesota Ave.
Kansas City, KS 66101
Tele: (913) 551-7594
REGION 8
Bob Brobst or Tom Johnson
(8WM-C)
999 18th St., Suite 500
Denver, CO 80202-2405
Tele: (303) 293-1627 (Bob)
(303) 293-1260 (Tom)
REGION 9
Lauren Fondahl
75 Hawthorne St. (W-5-2)
San Francisco, CA 94105
Tele: (415) 744-1909
REGION 10
Dick Hetherington
1200 Sixth Ave. (WD-134)
Seattle, WA 98101
Tele: (306) 553-1941
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