UDC 628.381:006.3:349.6
DOI 10.35776/VST.2023.04.06

Samburski Georgi, Shkaredo Viktoriia, Epstein Aleksandr, Maksimova Angelina

Wastewater sludge: secondary raw materials or by-products?

Summary

The issues of developing statutory regulation for wastewater sludge treatment are analyzed. Recommendations are given for water supply and wastewater disposal providers on classifying treated wastewater sludge as a by-product or a secondary resource. It is noted that the transition to a circular economy announced by the Ministry of Natural Resources of Russia involves the development of a regulatory framework; however, the passport of the federal project «Circular Economy» and presentation materials of the Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian Federation and the public-law company «Russian Ecological Operator» reduce the issues of the circular economy exclusively to the tasks in waste management, which carries high risks of significant costs associated with referring wastewater sludge to wastes. The introduction of new, statutory formalized concepts of «secondary raw materials» and «by-products of production» should play a decisive role in developing the regulation of wastewater sludge handling processes and using it in the economic activities as goods.

Key words

wastewater sludges , circular economy , secondary raw material , by-product of production