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Effects of land application of municipal biosolids on nitrogen-fixing bacteria in agricultural soil

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Abstract

Effects of municipal biosolids on microbial N2-fixation in agricultural soil were assessed in a 3-month laboratory study which included analysis of metals, pharmaceuticals, and personal care products. Reference agricultural soil was amended with organic manure or municipal biosolids from a southern Ontario wastewater plant, with a biosolids-only treatment included to evaluate metabolic activity in this inoculum. Microbial N2-fixation in reference and manure-amended soils were similar (p = 0.144) over 3 months and lower than in biosolids-amended soil (p = 0.001); however, differences among soil treatments decreased over time, with no significant difference at test termination. In general, one-time application of biosolids caused short-term stimulation of N2-fixing activity with a return to reference conditions within 3 months. Although no residual effects were detected, biosolids introduced elevated levels of metals, pharmaceuticals, personal care products (particularly analgesics), and viable bacteria; long-term effects caused by repeat applications (as commonly practiced) requires further investigation.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank Joseph Bautista and Dennis Walmsley for assistance during the experiment. Research was funded by an Ontario Graduate Scholarship in Science and Technology (OGSST), an Ontario Graduate Scholarship (OGS), a Ryerson Graduate Award, a Golder Associates Ltd. Continued Learning Award, an NSERC Operating Grant to Dr. Lynda McCarthy, and the Ryerson Department of Chemistry and Biology. Chemical analysis by AGAT Laboratories was funded by Golder Associates Ltd.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Environmental Applied Science and Management Program, Ryerson University, 350 Victoria Street, Toronto, ON, M5B 2K3, Canada

    Leigh M. Holt, Andrew E. Laursen, Lynda H. McCarthy & I. Vadim Bostan

  2. Department of Chemistry and Biology, Ryerson University, 350 Victoria Street, Toronto, ON, M5B 2K3, Canada

    Andrew E. Laursen, Lynda H. McCarthy & I. Vadim Bostan

  3. Golder Associates Ltd, 220-1755 Springfield Road, Kelowna, BC, V1Y 5V5, Canada

    Leigh M. Holt

  4. Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Toledo, 2801 West Bancroft Street, Toledo, OH, 43606, USA

    Alison L. Spongberg

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  1. Leigh M. Holt
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  2. Andrew E. Laursen
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  3. Lynda H. McCarthy
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  4. I. Vadim Bostan
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  5. Alison L. Spongberg
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Correspondence to Andrew E. Laursen.

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Holt, L.M., Laursen, A.E., McCarthy, L.H. et al. Effects of land application of municipal biosolids on nitrogen-fixing bacteria in agricultural soil. Biol Fertil Soils 46, 407–413 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00374-009-0431-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00374-009-0431-6

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