Composted Sewage Sludge Influences the Microbiome and Persistence of Human Pathogens in Soil

Composted sewage sludge (CSS) gained attention as a potential fertilizer in agriculture. Application of CSS increases soil microbial activity and microbial biomass, however, it can also lead to increased chemical and microbiological risks. In this study, we performed microcosm experiments to assess how CSS reshapes the microbial community of diluvial sand (DS) soil. Further, we assessed the potential of CSS to increase the persistence of human pathogens in DS soil and the colonization of Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa L. subsp. pekinensis (Lour.) Hanelt). The results revealed that CSS substantially altered the prokaryotic community composition. Moreover, addition of CSS increased the persistence of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium strain 14028s and S. enterica serovar Senftenberg in DS soil. However, the enhanced persistence in soil had no impact on the colonization rate of B. rapa grown on soil inoculated with Salmonella. We detected Salmonella in leaves of 1.9% to 3.6% of plants. Addition of CSS had no impact on the plant colonization rate. The use of sewage sludge composts is an interesting option. However, safety measures should be applied in order to avoid contamination of crop plants by human pathogens.

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Comparative assessment of microbial enzyme activity with compost and sewage sludge amendment

Journal of Applied and Natural Science ◽

10.31018/jans.v7i2.725 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 7 (2) ◽

pp. 1021-1028

Author(s):

Jatinder Kaur ◽

Sandeep Sharma ◽

Hargopal Singh

Keyword(s):

Enzyme Activity ◽

Sewage Sludge ◽

Organic Carbon ◽

Soil Microbial Activity ◽

Available Phosphorus ◽

Microbial Activities ◽

Soil Microbial ◽

Microbial Enzyme ◽

Positive Effect ◽

Digested Sewage Sludge

Changes in soil microbial activities were investigated to examine the effect of aerobically digested sewage sludge (SS) and compared with compost under incubation conditions over 63 days. Sandy soil was amended with 0.25, 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5 % w/w of compost and sewage sludge. Enzyme activity (dehydrogenase, alkaline phosphatase, acid phosphatase, phytase and urease) were examined at an interval of 3, 7, 14, 21, 28, 42 and 63 days. At the end of the experiment the change in organic carbon, nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus was also recorded.Results indicated that enzyme activities were substantially enhanced in presence of both amendments for first few days and the higher increases were measured at 1.5% of compost and sewage sludge amendment. Then an overall decrease in enzyme activity was recorded. Both the amendments also significantly increased the organic carbon, nitrogen and potassium of the soil while increase in available phosphorus was only recorded in treatment receiving compost. The present experiment indicated that addition of compost and sewage sludge have positive effect on soil microbial activity and can be safely used as soil amendment without having any adverse effect. Though, a previous examination of sewage sludge to be used must be made for heavy metals and pathogens.

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Salmonella enterica Serovar Typhimurium and Escherichia coli Survival in Estuarine Bank Sediments

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph15112597 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 15 (11) ◽

pp. 2597 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Mahbubul Siddiqee ◽

Rebekah Henry ◽

Rebecca Coulthard ◽

Christelle Schang ◽

Richard Williamson ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Escherichia Coli ◽

Salmonella Enterica ◽

Salmonella Enterica Serovar Typhimurium ◽

Growth Patterns ◽

Estuarine Sediments ◽

Human Pathogens ◽

Indicator Organisms ◽

Fecal Indicator ◽

E Coli ◽

Serovar Typhimurium

Estuarine bank sediments have the potential to support the survival and growth of fecal indicator organisms, including Escherichia coli. However, survival of fecal pathogens in estuarine sediments is not well researched and therefore remains a significant knowledge gap regarding public health risks in estuaries. In this study, simultaneous survival of Escherichia coli and a fecal pathogen, Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium, was studied for 21 days in estuarine bank sediment microcosms. Observed growth patterns for both organisms were comparable under four simulated scenarios; for continuous-desiccation, extended-desiccation, periodic-inundation, and continuous-inundation systems, logarithmic decay coefficients were 1.54/day, 1.51/day, 0.14/day, and 0.20/day, respectively, for E. coli, and 1.72/day, 1.64/day, 0.21/day, and 0.24/day for S. Typhimurium. Re-wetting of continuous-desiccated systems resulted in potential re-growth, suggesting survival under moisture-limited conditions. Key findings from this study include: (i) Bank sediments can potentially support human pathogens (S. Typhimurium), (ii) inundation levels influence the survival of fecal bacteria in estuarine bank sediments, and (iii) comparable survival rates of S. Typhimurium and E. coli implies the latter could be a reliable fecal indicator in urban estuaries. The results from this study will help select suitable monitoring and management strategies for safer recreational activities in urban estuaries.

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Effect of sewage sludge amendment on soil microbial activity and nutrient mineralization

Environment International ◽

10.1016/s0160-4120(98)00075-0 ◽

1998 ◽

Vol 24 (8) ◽

pp. 935-943 ◽

Cited By ~ 29

Author(s):

J WONG

Keyword(s):

Sewage Sludge ◽

Microbial Activity ◽

Soil Microbial Activity ◽

Soil Microbial ◽

Nutrient Mineralization

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Effect of an artificial soil mix from coal fly ash and sewage sludge on soil microbial activity

Biology and Fertility of Soils ◽

10.1007/bf00335916 ◽

1996 ◽

Vol 23 (4) ◽

pp. 420-424 ◽

Cited By ~ 18

Author(s):

J. W. C. Wong ◽

K. M. Lai

Keyword(s):

Fly Ash ◽

Sewage Sludge ◽

Microbial Activity ◽

Coal Fly Ash ◽

Soil Microbial Activity ◽

Artificial Soil ◽

Soil Microbial ◽

Soil Mix

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Industrial and urban organic wastes increase soil microbial activity and biomass

Revista Brasileira de Ciência do Solo ◽

10.1590/s0100-06832012000500027 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 36 (5) ◽

pp. 1629-1636 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Cácio Luiz Boechat ◽

Jorge Antonio Gonzaga Santos ◽

Adriana Maria de Aguiar Accioly ◽

Marcela Rebouças Bomfim ◽

Adailton Conceição dos Santos

Keyword(s):

Sewage Sludge ◽

Microbial Activity ◽

Pulp Mill ◽

Soil Microbial Activity ◽

Organic Wastes ◽

Metabolic Quotient ◽

Municipal Sewage Sludge ◽

Soil Microbial ◽

Pulp Mill Sludge ◽

The Impact

Microbial processes have been used as indicators of soil quality, due to the high sensitivity to small changes in management to evaluate, e.g., the impact of applying organic residues to the soil. In an experiment in a completely randomized factorial design 6 x 13 + 4, (pot without soil and residue or absolute control) the effect of following organic wastes was evaluated: pulp mill sludge, petrochemical complex sludge, municipal sewage sludge, dairy factory sewage sludge, waste from pulp industry and control (soil without organic waste) after 2, 4, 6, 12, 14, 20, 28, 36, 44, 60, 74, 86, and 98 days of incubation on some soil microbial properties, with four replications. The soil microbial activity was highly sensitive to the carbon/nitrogen ratio of the organic wastes. The amount of mineralized carbon was proportional to the quantity of soil-applied carbon. The average carbon dioxide emanating from the soil with pulp mill sludge, corresponding to soil basal respiration, was 0.141 mg C-CO2 100 g-1 soil h-1. This value is 6.4 times higher than in the control, resulting in a significant increase in the metabolic quotient from 0.005 in the control to 0.025 mg C-CO2 g-1 Cmic h-1 in the soil with pulp mill sludge. The metabolic quotient in the other treatments did not differ from the control (p < 0.01), demonstrating that these organic wastes cause no disturbance in the microbial community.

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The effect of sewage sludge and BAF inoculant on plant condition and yield as well as biochemical and microbial activity of soil in willow (Salix viminalisL.) culture as an energy crop

PeerJ ◽

10.7717/peerj.6434 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 7 ◽

pp. e6434 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Katarzyna Panasiewicz ◽

Alicja Niewiadomska ◽

Hanna Sulewska ◽

Agnieszka Wolna-Maruwka ◽

Klaudia Borowiak ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sewage Sludge ◽

Microbial Activity ◽

Sewage Treatment ◽

Optimal Solution ◽

Residual Effect ◽

Soil Microbial Activity ◽

Energy Crop ◽

Industrial Plants ◽

Microbial Inoculant ◽

Soil Microbial

Excessive amounts of sewage sludge produced in sewage treatment plants along with the ban on its storage and dumping require rapid solutions to the problem of sewage sludge management. An example of a rational and environmentally viable method may be provided by its application in agriculture and environmental management. The optimal solution is to use sludge as a fertiliser for industrial plants, including energy crops, that is, those not used in food production. For environmental reasons it is essential to control soil quality and condition following sludge application. Analyses of the residual effect of sewage sludge and bacteria, actinobacteria, fungi microbial inoculant (BAF) on selected physiological parameters of plants and microbial activity of soil were conducted in the years 2013–2015 on experimental fields of the Poznan University of Life Sciences. The results indicate that the application of sewage sludge increased yields and improved selected photosynthesis activity and biometric traits of willow. Among the tested combinations the best results were obtained following the application of sewage sludge combined with the BAF medium microbial inoculant. Similar dependencies were observed when evaluating soil microbial activity.

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