Book Description

This document presents the findings of an extensive study of the fertilizer industry for the purpose of developing effluent limitation guidelines for existing point sources and standards of performance and pretreatment standards for new sources to implement sections 304, 306, and 307 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, as amended (33 U.S.C. 1551, 1314, and 1316, 86 Stat. 816 et. seg.)(the "Act"). The study included a detailed and extensive exemplary plant survey, contacts with consultants and government officials, and literature search. The industry survey involved data gathering, sample collection and analysis, and personal visitation with responsible plant operating personnel to obtain first-hand information on treatment technology in commercial use and technology in development and pilot plant stages. The three main outputs from the study were: industry categorization, recommendations on effluent guuidelines, and definition of treatment technology. The fertilizer industry was divided into five categories for more meaningful separation and division of waste water treatment and development of effluent guidelines. These subcategories are phosphate, ammonia, urea, ammonium nitrate and nitric acid products. The phosphate subcategory includes all ancillary operations necessary for phosphate production (e.g. sulfuric acid and phosphoric acid). Effluent guidelines for best practicable control technology currently available, best available technology economically achievable, and new source performance standards are recommended for each category. Treatment technologies such as either in-process or end-of-process add on units are available or are in advanced development stages to enable existent and future fertilizer plants to meet the recommended effluent guidelines.