Abstract
The current study aimed at evaluating the effects of different sewage sludge (SS) amendment rates as biofertilizers on growth of Corchorus olitorius plants and soil properties, with an emphasis on heavy metal (HM) allocation in plant parts and postharvest soil. Then, the soil was supplemented with various SS rates (0, 10, 20, 30, and 40 g kg−1). The effects of these SS amendment rates on different growth parameters of Corchorus olitorius and soil properties were investigated. The SS amendment rate of 20 g kg−1 triggered the highest growth rates of Corchorus plants. Micronutrient HMs, including Co, Cu, Mn, and Ni, increased in the shoots of plants grown in soils amended with 20 g kg−1, but with levels sufficient for normal plant growth and below the phytotoxic limits. The sludge application significantly increased the content of organic matter in postharvest soil from 1.38 to 4.83% at the amendment rate of 20 g kg−1. Furthermore, our data showed that the quantities of the estimated HMs remaining in postharvest soils were below (Cu, Fe, Mn, Mo, Zn, and Pb) or within (Co, Ni, Cd, and Cr) the maximum permissible concentrations in agricultural soils at all of the SS amendment rates. Taken together, our findings suggest that soil application of SS can provide a sustainable safe practice for SS disposal and improve plant growth, while exerting no environmental threats provided there is no accumulation of HMs to toxic levels in shoots of the grown plants or in the amended soils.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Adriano DC (2001) Trace elements in terrestrial environments. In: Biogeochemistry, bioavailability and risks of metals. Springer-Verlag, New York, p 867
Allen S (1989) Chemical analysis of ecological materials. London: Blackwell Scientific Publications
Antolín MC, Pascaul I, Garcia C, Polo A, Sanchez-Diaz M (2005) Growth, yield and solute content of barley in soils treated with sewage sludge under semiarid Mediterranean conditions. Field Crops Res 94:224–237
Arenas-Lago D, Vega FA, Silva LFO, Andrade ML (2013) Soil interaction and fractionation of added cadmium in some Galician soils. Micro chem J 110:681–690
Asgari Lajayer B, Najafi N, Moghiseh E, Mosaferi M, Hadian J (2019) Effects of gamma irradiated and non-irradiated sewage sludge on growth characteristics, leaf chlorophyll index, and macronutrients concentrations in Basil. J Soil Sci. Plant Nutr. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42729-019-00057-4
Barberio G, Cutaia L, Librici V (2013) Treatment and disposal of sewage sludge: comparative life cycle assessment on Italian case study extended abstract. Environ Eng Manag J 12:7–10
Belhaj D, Elloumi N, Jerbi B, Zouari M, Abdallah FB, Ayadi H, Kallel M (2016) Effects of sewage sludge fertilizer on heavy metal accumulation and consequent responses of sunflower (Helianthus annuus). Environ Sci Pollut Res 23:20168–20177
Cerqueira B, Vega FA, Silva LF, Andrade L (2012) Effects of vegetation on chemical and mineralogical characteristics of soils developed on a decantation bank from a copper mine. Sci Total Environ 421(422):220–229
Cornell RM, Schwertmann U (2003) The iron oxides, 2nd edn. WileyVCH, Weinheim
Denny H (2002) Plant mineral nutrition. In: Ridge I (ed) Plants. Oxford University Press, New York, pp 167–220
Dowdy RH, Larson WE, Titrud JM, Latterell JJ (1978) Growth and metal uptake of snap beans growth on sewage sludge amended soil. A four year study. J Environ Qual 7:252–257
Eid EM, Shaltout KH (2016) Bioaccumulation and translocation of heavy metals by nine native plant species grown at a sewage sludge dump site. Int J Phytoremed 18:1075–1085
Eid EM, El-Bebany AF, Alrumman SA, Abd El-latif H, Taher MA, Fawy KF (2017a) Effects of different sewage sludge applications on heavy metal accumulation, growth and yield of spinach (Spinacia oleracea L.). Int J Phytoremed 19:340–347
Eid EM, Alrumman SA, El-Bebany AF, Hesham A, Taher MA, Fawy KF (2017b) The effects of different sewage sludge amendment rates on the heavy metal bioaccumulation, growth and biomass of cucumbers (Cucumis sativus L.). Environ Sci Pollut Res 24:16371–16382
Eid EM, Alrumman SA, El-Bebany AF, Fawy KF, Taher MA, Hesham A, El-Shaboury GA, Ahmed MT (2018) The evaluation of sewage sludge application as a fertilizer for broad bean (Faba sativa Bernh.) crops. Food Energy Secur 7:e00142
Eid EM, Alrumman SA, El-Bebany AF, Fawy KF, Taher MA, Hesham A, El-Shaboury GA, Ahmed MT (2019) Evaluation of the potential of sewage sludge as a valuable fertilizer for wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) crops. Environ Sci Pollut Res 26:392–401
Fytili D, Zabaniotou A (2008) Utilization of sewage sludge in EU application of old and new methods-a review. Renew Sust Energ Rev 12:116–140
Gude VG (2015) Energy positive wastewater treatment and sludge management. Edorium J Waste Manage 1:10–15
Gul S, Naz A, Fareed I, Khan A, Irshad M (2015) Speciation of heavy metals during co-composting of livestock manure. Polish J Chem Technol 17:19–23
Guoqing X, Xiuqin C, Liping B, Hongtao Q, Haibo L (2019) Absorption, accumulation and distribution of metals and nutrient elements in poplars planted in land amended with composted sewage sludge: a field trial. Ecotox Environ Saf 182:109360
He ZL, Yang XE, Stoffella PJ (2005) Trace elements in agroecosystems and impacts on the environment. J Trace Elem Med Biol 19:125–140
Kabata-Pendias A (2011) Trace elements in soils and plants. Fourth edition. CRC Press, Boca Raton. 520 pages
Kacprzak M, Neczaj E, Fijałkowski K, Grobelak A, Grosser A, Worwag M, Rorat A, Brattebo H, Almås Å, Singh BR (2017) Sewage sludge disposal strategies for sustainable development. Environ Res 156:39–46
Kasim WA, Abokassem EM, Ragab GA, Sewelam N (2014) Alleviation of lead stress toxicity in Vigna unguiculata by salicylic acid. Egypt J Exp Biol (Bot) 10:37–49
Kirchmann H, Börjesson G, Kätterer T, Cohen Y (2017) From agricultural use of sewage sludge to nutrient extraction: a soil science outlook. Ambio 46(2):143–154
Kominko H, Gorazda K, Wzorek Z (2017) The possibility of organo-mineral fertilizer production from sewage sludge. Waste Biomass Valor 8(5):1781–1791
Kumpiene J, Lagerkvist A, Maurice C (2008) Stabilization of As, Cr, Cu, Pb and Zn in soil using amendments—a review. Waste Manage 28:215–225
Liu X, Liu L, Leng P, Hu Z (2019) Feasible and effective reuse of municipal sludge for vegetation restoration: physiochemical characteristics and microbial diversity. Sci Rep 9(1):879
Logan TJ, Harrison BJ (1995) Physical characteristics of alkaline stabilized sewage sludge (N-vitro soil) and their effects on soil properties. J Environ Qual 24:153–164
Martinez F, Cuevas G, Walter T, Iglesias I (2002) Urban organic wastes effects on soil chemical properties in degraded semiarid ecosystem. 17th WCSS, Symposium No.20. Thailand, pp. 1–9
Mehdizadeh M, Izadi-Darbandi E, Naseri-Rad H, Tobeh A (2013) Growth and yield of tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) as influenced by different organic fertilizers. Int J Agron Plant Prod 4:734–738
Mehrotra A, Kundu K, Sreekrishnan TR (2016) Decontamination of heavy metal laden sewage sludge with simultaneous solids reduction using thermophilic sulfur and ferrous oxidizing species. J Environ Manag 167:228–235
Morera MT, Echeverria J, Garrido J (2002) Bioavailability of heavy metals in soils amended with sewage sludge. Can J Soil Sci 82:433–438
Ndlovu J, Afolayan AJ (2008) Nutritional analysis of the South African wild vegetable Corchorus olitorius L. Asian J Plant Sci 7(6):615–618
Onwordi CT, Ogungbade AM, Wusu AD (2009) The proximate and mineral composition of three leafy vegetables commonly consumed in Lagos, Nigeria. Afri J Afr J Pure Appl Chem 3(6):102–107
Palit S, Sharma A, Talukder G (1994) Effects of cobalt on plants. Botanical Rev 60:149–181
Park JH, Bolan N, Megharaj M, Naidu R (2011) Role of organic amendments on enhanced bioremediation of heavy metal (loid) contaminated soils. J Hazard Mater 185:549–574
Parkpain P, Sirisukhodom S, Carbonell-Barrachina AA (1998) Heavy metals and nutrients chemistry in sewage sludge amended Thai soils. J Environ Sci Health A 33(4):573–597
Radford PJ (1967) Growth analysis formulae-their use and abuse. Crop Sci 7:171–175
Raheem A, Sikarwar VS, He J, Dastyar W, Dionysiou DD, Wang W, Zhao M (2018) Opportunities and challenges in sustainable treatment and resource reuse of sewage sludge: a revew. Chem Eng J 337:616–641
Ramulu USS (2002) Reuse of municipal sewage and sludge in agriculture. Scientific Publishers, Jodhpur
Rout GR, Sahoo S (2015) Role of iron in plant growth and metabolism. Rev Agri Sci 3:1–24
Samolada M, Zabaniotou A (2014) Comparative assessment of municipal sewage sludge incineration, gasification and pyrolysis for a sustainable sludge-to-energy management in Greece. Waste Manag 34:411–420
Sanchez Monedero MA, Mondini C, De Nobili M, Leita L, Roig A (2004) Land applications of biosolids. Soil response to different stabilization degree or treated organic matter. Waste Manag 24(4):325–332
Sewelam N, Elfeky S, El-Shintinawy F (2014) Phytoremediation of lead and cadmium contaminated soils using sunflower plant. J Stress Physiol Biochem 10:122–134
Sharma B, Sarkar A, Singh P, Singh RP (2017) Agricultural utilization of biosolids: a review on potential effects on soil and plant grown. Waste Manag 64:117–132
Singh RP, Agrawal M (2008) Potential benefits and risks of land application of sewage sludge. Waste Manag 28:347–358
Singh RP, Agrawal M (2009) Use of sewage sludge as fertilizer supplement for Abelmoschus esculentus plants: physiological, biochemical and growth responses. Int J Environ Waste Manag 3:91–106
Singh RP, Singh P, Ibrahim MH, Hashim R (2011) Land application of sewage sludge: physicochemical and microbial response. Rev Environ Contam Toxicol 214:41–61
Singh RP, Sarkar A, Sengupta C, Singh P, Miranda ARL, Nunes LAPL, Araujo ASF, Melo WJ (2015) Effect of utilization of organic waste as agricultural amendment on soil microbial biomass. Ann Res Rev Biol 7:155–162
Statsoft (2007) Statistica version 7.1. Tulsa: Statsoft Inc.
Tsakou A, Roulia M, Christodoulakis NS (2002) Growth of flax plants (Linum usitatissimum) as affected by water and sludge from a sewage treatment plant. Bull Environ Contam Toxicol 68:56–63
Tyagi VK, Lo S-L (2013) Sludge: a waste or renewable source for energy and resources recovery? Renew Sust Energ Rev 25:708–728
Vaish B, Sarkar A, Singh P, Singh PK, Sengupta C, Singh RP (2016) Prospects of biomethanation in Indian urban solid waste: stepping towards a sustainable future. In: Recycling of Solid Waste for Biofuels and Bio-chemicals. Springer, Singapore, pp 1–29
Wang X, Chen T, Ge Y, Jia Y (2008) Studies on land application of sewage sludge and its limiting factors. J Hazard Mater 160:554–558
Wasilkowski D, Nowak A, Płaza G, Mrozik A (2017) Effects of pulp and Na-Bentonite amendments on the mobility of trace elements, soil enzymes activity and microbial parameters under ex situ aided phytostabilization. PLoS ONE 12:e0169688
Wilke BM (2005) Determination of chemical and physical soil properties. In: Margesin R, Schinner F (eds) Manual for soil analysis-monitoring and assessing soil bioremediation. Springer-Verlag, Heidelberg, pp 47–95
Zhang Q, Hu J, Lee DJ, Chang Y, Lee YJ (2017) Sludge treatment: current research trends. Bioresour Technol 243:1159–1172
Acknowledgments
This work was supported by the Deanship of Scientific Research at King Khalid University under grant number R.G.P. 1/14/40.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of Interest
The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
Additional information
Publisher’s Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Eid, E.M., Hussain, A.A., Taher, M.A. et al. Sewage Sludge Application Enhances the Growth of Corchorus olitorius Plants and Provides a Sustainable Practice for Nutrient Recirculation in Agricultural Soils. J Soil Sci Plant Nutr 20, 149–159 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42729-019-00113-z
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s42729-019-00113-z