ISTC News Highlights
Treatment plants can effectively remove microplastics and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from wastewater before they’re discharged to lakes and rivers, but large amounts of contaminants end up in solid waste, called biosolids, often used on agricultural fields as soil nutrients. By land applying this material, these contaminants then are re-released back into the environment.
In the fall of 2022, University of Illinois Extension received funding from the Extension Foundation USDA-NIFA New Technologies in Ag Extension (NTAE) program for the expansion of its “Building a Culture of Composting in Greater Chicagoland” project. The goal was to divert food scraps and organic waste from landfills through educational efforts on the benefits of composting. Extension asked the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center’s Technical Assistance Program (TAP) to partner with them to provide food waste technical assistance to small businesses in the Chicagoland area.