§ Lieutenant-Colonel Sir J. NORTON GRIFFITHSasked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Agriculture whether the Board of Agriculture have given consideration to the possibility of enlarging the food production of the country to extend land cultivation with the employment of town sewage for manurial purposes; whether the sewage of the London Metropolitan area is now disposed of under wasteful conditions and in a manner contrary to Acts of Parlia- 233W merit and the findings of a Royal Commission; and whether he can state the analysis and value of sewage as a manure?
Sir A. BOSCAWENThe answer to the first part of the question is in the affirmative. The Board are watching closely all promising methods of using sewage as manure, and are experimenting with sewage sludge. They have been informed that the Local Government Board are not aware of any suggestion in the Royal Commission Reports that the sewage of the Metropolis should be dealt with in any particular manner, nor do the Local Government Board understand that the
ANALYSES OF SEWAGE AND SEWAGE SLUDGES. 1. Sewages— Parts per 100,000. Type of Sewage. Weak Domestic. Average Domestic. Manufacturing City Strong Domestic. Slaithwaite. Hampton. Ammoniacal Nitrogen 1.66 3.96 2.27 9.40 Organic Nitrogen … 0.89 1.91 1.02 3.14 Total Nitrogen … … 2.55 5.87 3.29 12.54 Suspended Solids … 10.70 31.10 35.00 48.50
2. Sludges— Per cent. On Dry matter. 1905—(a) Older methods of Tank treatment. 1918—(b) Newer methods. — Lime and Alumino-ferric Precipitation. Septic Tank. Slate-bed Sludge. Activated Sludge. Activated Sludge. Dorking. Leeds. Harpenden. Withington. St. Albans. Organic Matter … 39.80 38.78 46.80 44.79 1 Inorganic Matter … 60.20 61.22 53.20 55.21 — Total Nitrogen … 0.89 1.38 2.63 7.09 7.50 Phosphoric Acid … 0.66 0.66 0.34 3.75 — Lime … … … 23.16 9.28 — — — Potash … … … 0.07 — 0.08 — —
3. Special Sludges— — Degreased Sludge (Grossmann process). Degreased Sludge (Huddersfield). "Native Guano" (Kingston), 1905. Organic Matter … … 35.5 59.8 51.25 Inorganic Matter … … 64.5 40.2 48.75 Total Nitrogen … … 1.55 1.87 1.93 Phosphoric Acid … … 1.33 1.07 1.74 Lime … … … … … … — 1.54 3.30 Potash … … … … … … — — 0.16