Sewage Sludge Surveys
On this page:
- Next National Sewage Sludge Survey
- 2006 Targeted National Sewage Sludge Survey (TNSSS)
- 2001 National Sewage Sludge Survey
- 1988 National Sewage Sludge Survey
- Studies Related to the Sewage Sludge Surveys
List of Chemicals Found in Biosolids
In 2022, the EPA published an article describing the curation process to produce a complete list of the chemicals found in biosolids based on eight biennial review reports and three national sewage sludge surveys. Summary statistics of concentration data are also reported for the 484 chemicals found in the three national sewage sludge surveys.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency conducts national sewage sludge surveys (NSSS) to collect national concentration data of contaminants found in sewage sludge. This information is used to inform risk assessments and risk management.
Next National Sewage Sludge Survey
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is planning to conduct the next NSSS in collaboration with the Effluent Guidelines Program’s publicly owned treatment works (POTW) Influent PFAS Study. This NSSS will focus on obtaining current national concentration data on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in sewage sludge. The data generated by the NSSS will help inform future risk assessments and risk management actions for sewage sludge.
For the POTW Influent PFAS Study and NSSS, the EPA plans to send a questionnaire to approximately 400 large POTWs in the nation. A subset (200-300 POTWs of the 400) will be selected to conduct wastewater (POTW Influent PFAS Study) and sewage sludge (NSSS) sampling. For the NSSS, POTWs will collect and analyze grab samples of sewage sludge for forty specific PFAS (EPA Method 1633), as well as ancillary parameters for sample characterization. A Voluntary Data Submission Portal also will be available throughout the POTW Influent PFAS Study and NSSS to gather more PFAS data nationwide.
• POTW Influent PFAS Study
• PFAS in Sewage Sludge
2006 Targeted National Sewage Sludge Survey (TNSSS)
The Targeted National Sewage Sludge Survey was conducted from 2006-2007 to obtain national estimates of the concentrations of pollutants, focusing on pharmaceuticals, steroids, and hormones, in sewage sludge. The EPA focused on POTWs that treat more than one million gallons of wastewater per day and which collectively generate approximately 94% of the wastewater flow in the United States.
2001 National Sewage Sludge Survey
The 2001 National Sewage Sludge Survey was conducted to obtain national estimates of concentrations of dioxin and dioxin-like compounds in sewage sludge to use in assessing their potential risk to human and ecological health as a result of land application, surface disposal and incineration.
1988 National Sewage Sludge Survey
The results of the 1988 National Sewage Sludge Survey were used to assess potential risk to human health and the environment from pollutants found in biosolids in support of the 1993 regulation 40 CFR Part 503, Standards for the Use or Disposal of Sewage Sludge.
Studies Related to the Sewage Sludge Surveys
The primary objective of the following study was to investigate the occurrence of Contaminants of Emerging Concern (CECs), namely pharmaceuticals, detergents, natural and synthetic hormones, and other chemicals using nine publicly owned treatment works.
This following report describes the sampling and analysis activities performed in a follow-up to the EPA's Targeted National Sewage Sludge Survey (TNSSS) and presents summary level data from the elemental analyses of sewage sludge samples.