Discharges to water and sewage sludge production in 2018
Discharges of phosphorous have increased
Statistical news from Statistics Sweden and Swedish Environmental Protection Agency 2020-07-01 9.30
In 2018, total discharges of nutrients to water via municipal wastewater treatment plants subject to authorisation amounted to 270 tonnes of phosphorous, 15 000 tonnes of nitrogen, 6 500 tonnes of biochemical oxygen demand (BOD7), and 40 500 tonnes of chemical oxygen demand (COD-Cr), including some wastewater overflow at the plants.
Sea basin district | Tot-P | Tot-N | BOD7 | COD-Cr |
---|---|---|---|---|
Bothnian Bay | 12 | 1 307 | 622 | 2 061 |
Bothnian Sea | 33 | 3 508 | 1 160 | 5 133 |
Baltic Sea | 121 | 6 020 | 2 367 | 19 599 |
The Sound (Öresund) | 30 | 926 | 542 | 3 138 |
Kattegat | 65 | 2 990 | 1 741 | 9 907 |
Skagerrak | 5 | 232 | 116 | 646 |
Total 2018 | 266 | 14 982 | 6 548 | 40 483 |
Total 2016 | 237 | 15 414 | 6 612 | 35 257 |
Total 2014 | 260 | 15 743 | 7 549 | 44 496 |
Total 2012 | 275 | 17 120 | 7 993 | 47 264 |
Total 2010 | 267 | 17 419 | 7 908 | 46 510 |
Total 2008 | 313 | 18 433 | 7 447 | 46 893 |
Phosphorous | Nitrogen | BOD7 | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
In | Out | Rate of removal | In | Out | Rate of removal | In | Out | Rate of removal | ||
tonnes | tonnes | % | tonnes | tonnes | % | tonnes | tonnes | % | ||
Total 2018 | 5 351 | 266 | 95 | 41 294 | 14 982 | 64 | 224 533 | 6 548 | 97 | |
2016 | 5 546 | 237 | 96 | 41 049 | 15 414 | 62 | 215 488 | 6 612 | 97 | |
2014 | 5 176 | 260 | 95 | 41 340 | 15 743 | 62 | 208 340 | 7 549 | 96 | |
2012 | 5 307 | 275 | 95 | 41 967 | 17 120 | 59 | 196 706 | 7 993 | 96 | |
2010 | 5 563 | 267 | 95 | 42 292 | 17 419 | 59 | 202 100 | 7 908 | 96 | |
2008 | 6 346 | 313 | 95 | 42 360 | 18 433 | 56 | 202 717 | 7 447 | 96 |
Agricultural use is now the most common use of sewage sludge
Use on agricultural land remains the most common application of sewage sludge from municipal wastewater treatment plants since 2016. In 2018, total sewage sludge used in agriculture was estimated to be around 83 000 tonnes of dry substance, corresponding to 39 percent of total net production. This is five percentage points more than in 2016. Plant soil use was the second most common use of sewage sludge, with 54 000 tonnes, corresponding to 26 percent of total net production, which is one percentage point less than in 2016. The third most common use was as landfill cover to establish a plant layer, with 36 200 tonnes, corresponding to 17 percent of total net production, which is five percentage points less than in 2016.
Wastewater treatment plants’ estimated production of sewage sludge (dry substance) was around 212 000 tonnes in 2018, which is 3.6 percent more than in 2016.
Sewage sludge use categories (tonnes) | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Farmland | Forest land | Plant soil, normal P | Plant soil, high P | Landfill cover | Incineration without P extraction | Incineration with P extraction | Landfill | Other use | Storage | Use not specified | |||
2018 | 211 604 | 82 288 | 137 | 26 271 | 27 768 | 36 199 | 2 816 | 0 | 2 299 | 21 095 | 12 466 | 265 | |
2016 | 204 253 | 69 506 | 150 | 23 908 | 31 733 | 44 506 | 4 154 | 0 | 3 060 | 14 368 | 11 157 | 1 711 | |
2014 | 200 510 | 50 950 | 570 | 20 130 | 38 980 | 47 520 | 1 790 | 380 | 3 560 | 20 040 | 13 650 | 2 940 | |
2012 | 207 460 | 48 340 | 1 280 | 25 510 | 41 140 | 47 450 | 1 290 | 190 | 7 130 | 23 580 | 2 470 | 9 080 | |
2010 | 203 520 | 50 460 | 1 680 | 26 710 | 38 500 | 41 490 | 2 220 | 230 | 7 540 | 17 260 | 17 390 | 40 | |
2008 | 213 790 | 55 640 | 1 920 | 17 580 | 40 510 | 42 510 | 330 | 130 | 6 240 | 15 180 | 6 790 | 26 990 |
Concentrations of nutrients, metals and organic indicator substances in sewage sludge from municipal wastewater treatment plants, by municipal wastewater treatment plant class size, are given in table 4.
Average values, mg/kg TS | ||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Population equivalent (pe) | ||||||||||
–19 999 | 20 000–99 999 | 100 000– | Total | |||||||
2018 | 2016 | 2014 | 2012 | 2010 | 2008 | |||||
Phosphorous | 18 270 | 25 288 | 31 617 | 26 500 | 26 857 | 26 360 | 26 410 | 27 640 | 27 740 | |
Nitrogen | 36 552 | 44 243 | 51 950 | 45 934 | 45 330 | 45 150 | 43 010 | 44 080 | 42 590 | |
Cadmium | 0.7 | 0.8 | 0.7 | 0.7 | 0.8 | 0.9 | 1 | 0.9 | 0.8 | |
Chromium | 17.6 | 26.5 | 21.5 | 22.1 | 23.1 | 24.2 | 28 | 28.8 | 28.3 | |
Copper | 270 | 323.9 | 374.6 | 335.3 | 342.8 | 348 | 352.7 | 347.3 | 335.3 | |
Mercury | 0.4 | 0.4 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.6 | 0.6 | 0.6 | |
Nickel | 11.8 | 16 | 19.8 | 16.8 | 16.5 | 16.3 | 17.4 | 16.6 | 16.9 | |
Lead | 13.7 | 16.7 | 17 | 16.2 | 16.1 | 19.4 | 22.1 | 21.9 | 22.4 | |
Zink | 486.3 | 585.4 | 587.3 | 562.5 | 572 | 568.2 | 601.5 | 570.1 | 544.3 | |
Nonylphenol | 2.6 | 3.5 | 5.8 | 4.3 | 6.4 | 7.2 | 8.6 | 10.3 | 10.6 | |
PAH | 0.34 | 0.48 | 0.88 | 0.63 | 0.68 | 0.85 | 0.88 | 0.94 | 0.98 | |
PCB | 0.01 | 0.02 | 0.02 | 0.02 | 0.03 | 0.05 | 0.04 | 0.04 | 0.05 |
The statistics are now available in the statistical database
The statistics published in the Statistical Reports on 2018, 2016, and 2014 are now available in Statistics Sweden’s Statistical Database. There, the tables can be tailored to the user’s needs by selecting specific variables and groups. It is also possible to export the statistics to other file formats for further analysis and to use Statistics Sweden’s API for automated data requests.
Publication
More detailed statistics about discharges to water from municipal wastewater treatment plants can be found in the Statistical Report Discharges to water and sewage sludge production in 2018.
Statistical Database
More information is available in the Statistical Database
Feel free to use the facts from this statistical news but remember to state Source: Statistics Sweden.