Global sludge management: a status report and perspective

Sludge management is a more and more complex problem due to increased difficulties in locating disposal works and meeting more stringent environmental quality requirements. The most recent notable developments in conventional processing systems have regarded dewatering and stabilization, which remain essential prerequisites to any disposal method. With the increasing pressure on disposal options, such as agricultural use and landfilling, there has been a resurgence of interest in incineration. New processes and alternative uses have been proposed and experienced, but most of them still require further investigations to evaluate effectiveness and reliability. In any case, it is not realistic to search for a global solution to the problem, but the best solutions must derive from local and site-specific considerations.