Related policies and standards of China's sludge treatment industry

1. In the 1960s-1970s, there were few wastewater treatment plants in China, primarily using land application and mesophilic anaerobic digestion, with almost all technology and equipment imported. To guide agricultural use of sludge, in 1984, the Ministry of Urban and Rural Construction and Environmental Protection issued the "Pollutant Control Standards for Agricultural Sludge" (GB4284-84). This standard limited harmful substances in sludge and stipulated the duration for agricultural use, providing preliminary guidance on the safety of sludge agricultural use to a certain extent; however, due to its age, this standard cannot ensure the safe use of sludge on land. Moreover, China lacks long-term monitoring of sludge agricultural use. On July 17, 1993, the former Ministry of Construction issued the "Discharge Standards for Wastewater and Sludge from Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plants" (CJ3025-93), which stipulated textual provisions for sludge discharge standards from municipal wastewater treatment plants, requiring that sludge from such plants be dewatered, with a moisture content ideally less than 80%.

2. In 2000, the Ministry of Construction, the State Environmental Protection Administration, and the Ministry of Science and Technology jointly issued the "Technical Policy for Urban Wastewater Treatment and Pollution Prevention". This policy proposed requirements for sludge treatment, stating that sludge generated from urban wastewater treatment should be stabilized through methods such as anaerobic digestion, aerobic digestion, and composting, or properly disposed of by sanitary landfill. Treated sludge that meets stabilization and harmlessness requirements can be used for agricultural purposes; otherwise, it should be disposed of via sanitary landfill according to relevant standards and requirements.

In 2002, the State Environmental Protection Administration and the State Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine approved and issued the "Discharge Standard of Pollutants for Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plants" (GB18918-2002). This standard specified the indicators after sludge stabilization treatment: regardless of whether anaerobic or aerobic digestion is used, the organic matter degradation rate must be greater than 40%; it further stipulated limits for moisture content, mortality of helminth eggs, and fecal coliform values.

3. After 2007, the state further intensified management of sludge treatment and disposal. The State Environmental Protection Administration launched the "Environmental Technology Management System Construction" and listed sludge as one of the first six pilot industries, and in early 2008 issued the "Technical Guidelines for the Best Available Best Practices for Sludge Treatment and Disposal at Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plants" (draft for comments).

4. In order to accelerate the construction of China's sludge treatment and disposal standard system, with the approval of the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine, and under the specific management of the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, the National Technical Committee for Standardization of Sludge Treatment and Disposal of Urban Sewage Treatment Plants was established to take charge of the centralized management and administration of sludge treatment and disposal standards for urban sewage treatment plants. After nearly 4 years, a total of 9 industry standards have been issued.

5. In 2009, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development also promulgated the "Technical Specification for Sludge Treatment of Urban Sewage Treatment Plants" (CJJ 131-2009) (Recordation No. J891-2009). In February of the same year, the Ministry of Construction, the Ministry of Environmental Protection, and the Ministry of Science and Technology jointly issued the "Technical Policy for Sludge Treatment, Disposal, and Pollution Prevention of Urban Sewage Treatment Plants (Trial)", which clarified the technical route for sludge treatment and disposal, stipulated the treatment, disposal, and comprehensive utilization of sludge under the premise of safety, environmental protection, and economy, and also stipulated the safeguard measures for sludge treatment and disposal; on the other hand, it proposed a investment and financing mechanism for sludge treatment and disposal, which is conducive to the development of the sludge market.

6. In order to provide guidance on sludge treatment and disposal technology, the Ministry of Environmental Protection issued the "Best Available Technical Guide for Sludge Treatment, Disposal, and Pollution Prevention of Urban Sewage Treatment Plants (Trial)" in February 2010, which selected the best available technologies for sludge treatment and disposal. The issuance of the technical policy and the best available technical guide has pointed out the direction for sludge treatment and disposal of urban sewage treatment plants in China, and to a large extent will promote the development of sludge treatment and disposal in China. In November 2010, the Ministry of Environmental Protection issued the "Notice on Strengthening the Prevention and Control of Sludge Pollution in Urban Sewage Treatment Plants", requiring local governments at all levels to accelerate the construction of sludge treatment facilities;

7. In March 2011, the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development jointly issued the "Notice on Further Strengthening the Organization and Implementation of Demonstration Projects for Sludge Treatment and Disposal", requiring relevant departments in various localities to attach great importance to sludge treatment and disposal work. On March 14, 2011, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development and the National Development and Reform Commission jointly issued the "Technical Guide for Sludge Treatment and Disposal of Urban Sewage Treatment Plants (Trial)" (Jianke [2011] No. 34) (hereinafter referred to as the "Guide"). In view of the current situation that most sludge from urban sewage treatment plants in China has not been harmlessly treated and disposed of, and resource utilization is relatively lagging behind, the "Guide" plans the sludge treatment and disposal work for urban sewage treatment plants from the aspects of general provisions, sources and characteristics of sludge, technical routes and scheme selection for sludge treatment and disposal, sludge disposal methods and related technologies, emergency response and risk management, etc.

Planning: This is mainly reflected in the national urban sewage treatment and recycling facility construction plan, which lists the safe disposal of sludge as one of the four major tasks, and makes overall provisions and predictions on sludge output, treatment and disposal methods, and investment. During the 12th Five-Year Plan period, investment in sludge treatment and disposal facilities was 31.2 billion yuan, with an average harmless disposal rate of 70% in more than 36 provincial capitals and cities specifically designated in the state plan, and an increase in new daily sludge treatment capacity of 47,000 tons per day.