Phosphorus recycling in Europe: innovation & regulation - Phorwater seminar Madrid 14-07-2016

PhorWater Madrid 14th July 2016 - 1

Phosphorus recycling in Europe: innovation & regulation

Chris Thornton - European Sustainable Phosphorous [email protected]

www.phosphorusplatform.eu @phosphorusfacts

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.phosphorusplatform.eu/

https://twitter.com/phosphorusfacts




ESPP: a coalition for action• Bring together industry, R&D, public authorities,

stakeholderswater & waste industries, mineral and organic fertilisers,chemicals, P-recycling products and processes …

• Share vision for sustainable phosphorus in Europe• Dialogue & network expertise and experience• Build awareness• Assess and propose policy & regulatory

developments• Disseminate innovation, business cases, value chainswww.phosphorusplatform.eu


IWA-WEF Nutrient Recovery and Recycling, June 2016 – 3

Phosphorus recyclingA long history


P-recycling inputs Livestock manures Wastewater treatment Food wastes Meat & Bone Meal Ash Agro-industry, industrial Biofuels, biomaterials


P-recycling routes Sewage & manure biosolids to land

- after hygienisation, digestion, composting- recycles P, N, organic C- issues with contaminants (real or perceived), water content, logistics …- certification systems (e.g. REVAQ)

Use of wastewater or biosolids to feed- energy or bio-materials crops- algae aquaculture


Success story:Cooperl farmers’ cooperative, Brittany• 400 000 t/y manure processed to organic fertiliser

product- 150 000 t composted poultry litter- 150 000 t dried poultry manure- 100 000 t pig manure (1 100 farms)

• Nutrients adapted for specific crops• Export to other

regions of France


Success story:REVAQ sewage treatment Certification• > 50% Sweden’s sewage goes to REVAQ Certified

sewage works• Sludge digestate quality, monitoring,

information transparency criteria• 3000 t/year phosphorus recycled to agriculture


Success story:KOTO AlgaeBioGas, Llubljana• 13 000 t/y household and industry food waste

converted to biogas• 30 m2 pilot algae pond fed with digestate• Algae used for energy production,

fertilisers or bioplastics


P-recycling routes Adsorption to produce a

fertiliser - Organic by-products: posidonia, straw, …- (Calcinated) shells, minerals …- Biochar (porous)

Still at R&D stage Ion-Exchange Membranes

- e.g. mineral concentrates from manures

Electro-chemical cells ….


Success story:Polonite filter bedsNatural calcium silicateBinds P and reduces pathogensP-enriched = fertiliserUse in farm drainage ditches, manure, septic tank discharge, sewage treatment EcoFiltration AB http://ecofiltration.se/ PhosphoReduc LLC http://phosphoreduc.org/

http://ecofiltration.se/

http://ecofiltration.se/

http://phosphoreduc.org/




P-recycling routesPhosphate precipitation- struvite, K-struvite, brushite- from sewage, food industry waste streams, manures, bioenergy- synergy with biological P removal and anaerobic digestion in sewage works- upstream or downstream of sludge dewatering- can combine with sludge hydrolysis e.g. Cambi, Eliquo Stulz, Exelys, Pondus …

http://www.ostara.com/


Success story:Timac: struvite as maize starter fertiliser• NuReSys Recovered struvite • Non-burning, enabling “ultra localisation” by roots• Micro-granulation• Ammonium addition for nutrient balance


P-recycling routesPhosphate leaching from sludge- acid leaching: Gifhorn (Seaborne), Stuttgart high chemical consumption (pH 3-5 then pH 8.5-10) - Budenheim process: compressed & cycled CO2 see SCOPE Newsletter 103 1 m3 industrial pilot will be operational Mainz end 2016Electro-thermal production of White Phosphorus (P4)- RecoPhos process purchased by ICL 2015 see SCOPE Newsletter 120


P-recycling routesUse of P-rich ashes in fertiliser production processes- Chicken manure ashes, slaughterhouse rendering ashes (MBM) sold directly as fertiliser, useful in fertiliser production (Saria UK, Fibrophos UK, Honkajoki Finland, BMC Moerdijk Netherlands, EkoVäx Sweden ….)- Sewage sludge incineration ash work ongoing to use in fertiliser production (ICL Amsterdam, Ludwigshaven) issues with Mg, Fe, Al See SCOPE Newsletter 115 & 113


Success story:Ecophos P-recycling from sewage sludge• Pilot plant operational Varna, Bulgaria• Produce DCP (Di Calcium Phosphate) for fertilisers,

animal feed• Full-scale plant under construction Dunkerque, France

capacity: 200 000 t/y DCP from low grade P-rock and ash

• Contract to treat 60 000 t/y ash from Netherlands (SNB – HVC Groep) = 4 000 t/y P

See SCOPE Newsletter 111 and www.ecophos.com

http://www.ecophos.com/


Success story:Kanton Zürich Switzerland• 72 wwtps now deliver

100 000 t/y dewatered sludge to central mono-incinerator- 94% vote “Yes” in local referendum- commissioned 2015- delivers 15 000 t/y ash for P-recycling- 40% operating cost savings by energy efficient dryer

• 3,3 M CHF pilot P-recovery installation under construction- acid P leaching P, solvent extraction phosphoric acid

See SCOPE Newsletter 119


Regulatory developmentsEU Circular Economy Package• Public consultation (closed 20/8/2015)

Of 1281 respondents to the consultation:• 30% identified bio-nutrients as “secondary materials the EU

should target first”• In total, 54% cited bio-nutrients or phosphorus in their response

(all questions)

• Revised Package published 2/12/2015http://ec.europa.eu/environment/circular-economy/index_en.htm “Recycled nutrients are a distinct and important category of secondary raw materials” confirms revision of EU Fertiliser Regulation to include recycled nutrients underlines need for data on raw material flows nutrient recovery included in Bio-Based Industries Joint Undertaking roadmap absence of food waste recycling targets or collection obligation

http://ec.europa.eu/environment/circular-economy/index_en.htm

http://ec.europa.eu/environment/circular-economy/index_en.htm


Ellen MacArthur Foundation / McKinsey, Growth Within, 2015 www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org

http://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/


EU Fertiliser Regulation• Proposed text published 17/3/16

http://ec.europa.eu/DocsRoom/documents/15949 and see SCOPE Newsletter 120 on www.phosphorusplatform.eu

• Adoption after Council, EP Parliament … 2017 ? 2018?• Defines acceptable input materials (CMC = Component Material

Categories) and product specification (PFC = Product Function Categories)

• Covers fertilisers, soil improvers, growing media, liming additives, plant biostimulants

• Defines product safety (e.g. contaminants) and characteristics (e.g. <15% organic C = “inorganic” fertiliser, minimum nutrient contents per category)

plant nutrient availability is not specified• A product achieving EU Fertiliser Regulation criteria (CE mark)

will be able to be sold anywhere in Europe• Member States will continue to be able to authorise other products

as National Fertilisers (e.g. compost produced from sewage sludge in France) or to allow spreading of materials under waste-type authorisations

http://ec.europa.eu/DocsRoom/documents/15949



EU Fertiliser Regulation• Materials already included for authorisation

- compost and digestate, based on JRC proposed EU End-of-Waste criteria 2013

sewage sludge excluded as input material for composts & digestates

- certain food industry b-products: food lime, sugar molasses, vinasse

- certain animal by-products – manures ? – list not yet included in published draft• Proposed cadmium limit for inorganic macronutrient fertilisers

- 60 mgCd/kg P2O5 reducing to 40 then to 20 mg after 12 years• Other contaminant limits:

- e.g. for organic fertilisers: cadmium, chromium, mercury, nickel, lead, salmonella …


EU Fertiliser RegulationStruvite, ashes, biochars• EU Commission has commissioned JRC to prepare draft criteria

- mandate validated in EU Fertilisers Working Group 2015- call for Experts to advise this work 2/5/2016

• Objective is that EU criteria be finalised parallel to adoption of Regulationthen immediately added into Annexes

• ESPP has published proposed outline criteria for struvite, ash-based products, biochars - see www.phosphorusplatform.eu/regulatory

• First meeting expert group STRUBIAS 6-7 JulyIssues:- need to show “likely significant trade”- impact assessment: impurities, particularly for struvite pharmaceuticals- need different criteria for ash-as-fertiliser and ash-as-raw-material

http://www.phosphorusplatform.eu/regulatory


EU Fertiliser RegulationQuestions and comments• ESPP member EU Fertiliser Working Group• Traceability ?

- ESPP proposal: obligatory traceability and labelling for any product including sewage sludge or manure derived organics (= not if incinerated)

• Clarify criteria for adding new categories of material- likely significant trade, evidence of no risk, “sufficiently effective”

• Other new categories for which criteria should be prepared- mineral nutrient products extracted from organic waste treatment gases (e.g. ammonium sulfate from digester gas)- other precipitated phosphates (K-struvite, brushite …)- dried / granulated / nutrient balanced processes manure


North Sea Resources Roundabout• Flanders, France, Netherlands, UK• Signed 3/3/16• See SCOPE Newsletter 120 on www.phosphorusplatform.eu • Identify and address barriers to export/input of recycled material /

recycling• First three materials signed:

- compost- rigid PVC- ferrous metals

• Proposal to include struvite- annex underway (Véolia, Suez)



EIP-AGRI: Focus Group on Nutrient Recycling• How to improve the agronomic use of recycled nutrients:

- tools, market strategies- define information gaps, R&D support needs- input to future Horizon 2020 and other EU programme definition

• ESPP selected to Focus Group• First meeting end May• Need for feedback and inputMini-paper on Quality Standards for recycled nutrient products – lead = ESPP


• Standards• CEN SABE (Strategic Advisory Board on the Environment) Dec.

2015 recommendations for European standards developmentsto support phosphorus recycling pending adoptionCEN 308: Characterization and management of sludgeCEN 13714: Sludge management in relation to use or disposalCEN 13097: Good practice for sludge utilisation in agricultureCEN 165/WG 40 –Wastewater treatment plants > 50 PTCEN 223: Soil improvers and growing MediaCEN 260 – Fertilizers and liming Materials

• ISO 275 Sludge recovery, recycling, treatment and disposal WG7 Inorganic and Nutrients Recovery


Other regulatory developments• Nitrates Directive: “processed manure”• Organic Farming Regulation: proposed validation of recycled P

products- struvite- AshDec calcium phosphate recovered from ashes

• REACH (EU chemicals regulation): - Art 2(7)d “recovered” substances/by-products- digestates

• BAT BREFs (Industrial Emissions Directive): - pig & poultry production- large combustion plants – waste incineration – food, drink & milk- proposed “Resource Efficiency” BREF

• BEMPs: EMAS (EU Eco-Management and Audit Scheme Regulation) “agriculture”

• Horizon 2020: EU R&D funding, e.g. circular economy, nutrient cycles, nutrient recycling pilot plants

• EU Ecolabel: e.g. soil improvers


Phosphorus recycling in Europe: innovation & regulation

Chris Thornton - European Sustainable Phosphorous [email protected]

www.phosphorusplatform.eu @phosphorusfacts

mailto:[email protected]



