1986L0278 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 003.001 — 1
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►B COUNCILDIRECTIVE
of12June1986
ontheprotectionoftheenvironment,andinparticularofthesoil,whensewagesludgeisusedin
agriculture
(86/278/EEC)
(OJ L 181, 4.7.1986, p. 6)
Amended by:
Official Journal
No page date
►M1Council Directive 91/692/EEC of 23 December 1991 L 377 48 31.12.1991
►M2Council Regulation (EC) No 807/2003 of 14 April 2003 L 122 36 16.5.2003
Amended by:
►A1Act of Accession of Austria, Sweden and Finland C241 21 29.8.1994
(adapted by Council Decision 95/1/EC, Euratom, ECSC) L 1 1 1.1.1995
▼B
COUNCILDIRECTIVE
of12June1986
on the protection of the environment, and in particular of the soil,
whensewagesludgeisusedinagriculture
(86/278/EEC)
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic
Community, and in particular Articles 100 and 235 thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission (1),
Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament (2),
Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social
Committee (3),
Whereas the aim of this Directive is to regulate the use of sewage
sludge inagriculture insuch a way as to preven t harmful effects onsoil, vegetation, animals and man, while encouraging its correct use;
Whereas the disparity betweenthe Member States' provision s onthe
agricultural applications of sewage sludge might affect the functioningof the commonmarket; whereas inthis field the approximationof lawsprovided for under Article 100 of the Treaty should therefore be insti-
gated;
Whereas sewage sludge used in agriculture is not covered by Council
Directive 75/442/EEC of 15 July 1975 onwaste (
4);
Whereas the measures for which provisionis made inCoun cil Direc-
tive 78/319/EEC of 20 March 1978 on toxic and dangerous waste (5)
also apply to sewage sludge containing or contaminated by substancesor materials listed in the Annex to that Directive which are of such anature or are present in such quantities or concentrations that they
represent a hazard to human health or to the environment;
Whereas special arrangements should be made to ensure that man,
animals, plants and the environment are fully safeguarded against theharmful effects arising from the uncontrolled use of sludge;
Whereas this Directive also aims at establishing certain initial Commu-
nity measures in connection with soil protection;
Whereas sludge can have valuable agronomic properties and it is there-
fore justified to encourage its application in agriculture provided it isused correctly; whereas the use of sewage sludge must not impair thequality of the soil and of agricultural products;
Whereas some heavy metals may be toxic to plants and also to man
through their presence in crops and whereas it is necessary to laydown mandatory limit values for these elements in the soil;
Whereas the use of sludge should be prohibited when the concentration
of these metals inthe soil exceeds these limit values;
Whereas, moreover, it is necessary to prevent these limit values from
being exceeded as a result of the use of sludge; whereas, to this end,
it is necessary to limit the amount of heavy metals added to cultivated
soil either by setting maximum quantities for the amounts of sludgeused per annum and ensuring that the limit values for the concentrationof heavy metals in the sludge used are not exceeded or by seeking toensure that limit values for the quantities of heavy metals that can beadded to the soil onthe basis of a 10-year average are n ot exceeded;1986L0278 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 003.001 — 2
(1) OJ No C 264, 8. 10. 1982, p. 3 and OJ No C 154, 14. 6. 1984, p. 6.
(2) OJ No C 77, 19. 3. 1984, p. 136.
(3) OJ No C 90, 5. 4. 1983, p. 27.
(4) OJ No L 194, 25. 7. 1975, p. 39.
(5) OJ No L 84, 31. 3. 1978, p. 43.
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Whereas sludge must be treated before being used in agriculture;
whereas Member States may nevertheless authorize, on certain condi-tions, the use of untreated sludge, without risk to human or animal
health, if it is injected or worked into the soil;
Whereas a certain period must elapse between using the sludge and
putting stock out to pasture or harvesting fodder crops or certain crops
which are normally in direct contact with the soil and normally
consumed raw; whereas the use of sludge on fruit and vegetable cropsduring the growing season, except for fruit-tree crops, must be prohib-ited;
Whereas sludge should be used under conditions which ensure that the
soil and the surface and ground water are protected, in accordance withDirectives 75/440/EEC (
1) and 80/68/EEC (2);
Whereas to this end it is necessary to monitor the quality of sludges
and of the soils on which they are used and hence to make analyses
and to communicate certain results to the users;
Whereas a certain amount of essential information should be kept to
ensure better awareness of the use of sludge in agriculture and whereas
such information should be forwarded in the form of periodic reports to
the Commission; whereas, in the light of these reports, the Commissionwill if necessary draw up proposals to ensure greater protection for thesoil and the environment;
Whereas sludge from small sewage-treatment plants which treat
primarily domestic waste water represents little danger to human,animal and plant health and to the environment and should thereforebe exempt from some of the obligations laid down relating to informa-tion and analysis;
Whereas Member States should be able to draw up more stringent
provisions than those laid down in this Directive; whereas such provi-sions should be communicated to the Commission;
Whereas technical and scientific progress may make necessary the
rapid adaptationof certainof the requiremen ts laid downinthis Direc-tive; whereas, inorder to facilitate the in troductionof the measuresrequired for this purpose, a procedure should be laid downwherebyclose cooperationcould be established betweenthe Member Statesand the Commission; whereas such cooperation should take place
within a Committee on Adaptation to Technical and Scientific
Progress;
Whereas the Treaty has not provided the necessary powers, other than
those of Article 235,
HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:
Article 1
The purpose of this Directive is to regulate the use of sewage sludge in
agriculture insuch a way as to preven t harmful effects onsoil, vegeta-tion, animals and man, thereby encouraging the correct use of suchsewage sludge.
Article 2
For the purposes of this Directive:
(a) ‘sludge’ means:
(i) residual sludge from sewage plants treating domestic or urban
waste waters and from other sewage plants treating waste
waters of a compositionsimilar to domestic an d urbanwastewaters;1986L0278 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 003.001 — 3
(1) OJ No L 194, 25. 7. 1975, p. 26.
(2) OJ No L 20, 26. 1. 1980, p. 43.
▼B
(ii) residual sludge from septic tanks and other similar installations
for the treatment of sewage;
(iii) residual sludge from sewage plants other than those referred to
in(i) an d (ii);
(b) ‘treated sludge’ means:
sludge which has undergone biological, chemical or heat treatment,
long-term storage or any other appropriate process so as signifi-
cantly to reduce its fermentability and the health hazards resulting
from its use;
(c) ‘agriculture’ means:
the growing of all types of commercial food crops, including for
stock-rearing purposes;
(d) ‘use’ means:
the spreading of sludge on the soil or any other application of
sludge onan d inthe soil.
Article 3
1. The sludge referred to inArticle 2 (a) (i) may on ly be used in
agriculture inaccordan ce with this Directive.
2. Without prejudice to Directives 75/442/EEC and 78/319/EEC:
— the sludge referred to inArticle 2 (a) (ii) may be used inagriculture
subject to any conditions that the Member State concerned maydeem necessary for the protection of human health and the environ-ment,
— the sludge referred to inArticle 2 (a) (iii) may be used inagricul-
ture only if its use is regulated by the Member State concerned.
Article 4
Values for concentrations of heavy metals in soil to which sludge is
applied, concentrations of heavy metals in sludge and the maximum
annual quantities of such heavy metals which may be introduced into
soil intended for agriculture are given in Annexes I A, I B and I C.
Article 5
Without prejudice to Article 12:1. Member States shall prohibit the use of sludge where the concentra-
tionof on e or more heavy metals inthe soil exceeds the limit valueswhich they lay down in accordance with Annex I A and shall takethe necessary steps to ensure that those limit values are notexceeded as a result of the use of sludge.
2. Member States shall regulate the use of sludge insuch a way that
the accumulationof heavy metals inthe soil does n ot lead to thelimit values referred to inparagraph 1 bein g exceeded. To achievethis, they shall apply one or other of the procedures provided for in
(a) and (b) below:
(a) Member States shall lay downthe maximum quan tities of sludge
expressed in tonnes of dry matter which may be applied to thesoil per unit of area per year while observing the limit values forheavy metal concentration in sludge which they lay down inaccordance with Annex I B; or
(b) Member States shall ensure observance of the limit values for
the quantities of metals introduced into the soil per unit of areaand unit of time as set out in Annex I C.
Article 6
Without prejudice to Article 7:
(a) sludge shall be treated before being used in agriculture. Member
States may nevertheless authorize, under conditions to be laid1986L0278 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 003.001 — 4
▼B
down by them, the use of untreated sludge if it is injected or
worked into the soil;
(b) sewage-sludge producers shall regularly provide users with all the
information referred to in Annex II A.
Article 7
Member States shall prohibit the use of sludge or the supply of sludge
for use on:
(a) grassland or forage crops if the grassland is to be grazed or the
forage crops to be harvested before a certainperiod has elapsed.This period, which shall be set by the Member States taking parti-cular account of their geographical and climatic situation, shallunder no circumstances be less than three weeks;
(b) soil in which fruit and vegetable crops are growing, with the excep-
tionof fruit trees;
(c) ground intended for the cultivation of fruit and vegetable crops
which are normally in direct contact with the soil and normallyeaten raw, for a period of 10 months preceding the harvest of thecrops and during the harvest itself.
Article 8
The following rules shall be observed when using sludge:
— the sludge shall be used insuch a way that accoun t is takenof the
nutrient needs of the plants and that the quality of the soil and ofthe surface and ground water is not impaired,
— where sludge is used onsoils of which the pH is below 6, Member
States shall take into account the increased mobility and availabilityto the crop of heavy metals and shall, if necessary, reduce the limitvalues they have laid down in accordance with Annex I A.
Article 9
Sludge and soil on which it is used shall be analyzed as outlined in
Annexes II A and II B.
The reference methods for sampling and analysis are indicated in
Annex II C.
Article 10
1. Member States shall ensure that up-to-date records are kept,
which register:
(a) the quantities of sludge produced and the quantities supplied for
use inagriculture;
(b) the compositionan d properties of the sludge inrelationto the para-
meters referred to in Annex II A;
(c) the type of treatment carried out, as defined in Article 2 (b);
(d) the names and addresses of the recipients of the sludge and the
place where the sludge is to be used.
2. The records shall be available to the competent authorities and
shall provide a basis for the consolidated report referred to in Article
17.
3. Information on the methods of treatment and the results of the
analyses shall be released upon request to the competent authorities.
Article 11
Member States may exempt from Article 6 (b) and Article 10 (1) (b),
(c) and (d) and paragraph 2, sludge from sewage treatment plants witha treatment capacity below 300 kg BOD
5per day, corresponding to
5 000 person equivalents, which are designed primarily for the treat-ment of domestic waste water.1986L0278 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 003.001 — 5
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Article 12
Where conditions so demand, Member States may take more stringent
measures thanthose provided for inthis Directive.
Any decision of this nature shall be communicated to the Commission
in accordance with existing agreements.
Article 13
Adaptation to technical and scientific progress, in accordance with the
procedure referred to inArticle 15, shall cover the provision s of theAnnexes to the Directive, except for the parameters and values listedin Annexes I A, I B and I C, any factors likely to affect the evaluation
of the values, and the parameters for analysis referred to in Annexes II
Aa ndI IB .
Article 14
1. A committee for adapting this Directive to technical and scientific
progress (hereinafter called ‘the Committee’) is hereby set up. It shall
consist of representatives of the Member States with a representative of
the Commissionas chairman .
Article 15
1. The Commissionshall be assisted by the Committee for adaptin g
this Directive to technical and scientific progress.
2. Where reference is made to this Article, Articles 5 and 7 of Deci-
sion1999/468/EC (1) shall apply.
The period laid downinArticle 5(6) of Decision1999/468/EC shall be
set at three months.
3. The committee shall adopt its rules of procedure.
Article 16
1. Member States shall bring into force the laws, regulations and
administrative provisions necessary to comply with this Directive
within three years of its notification.
They shall forthwith inform the Commission thereof.
2. Member States shall communicate to the Commission the texts of
the provisions of national law which they adopt in the field governed
by this Directive.
Article 17
At intervals of three years Member States shall send information to the
Commissiononthe implemen tationof this Directive, inthe form of a
sectoral report which shall also cover other pertinent CommunityDirectives. The report shall be drawnup onthe basis other of a ques-tionnaire or outline drafted by the Commission in accordance with theprocedure laid downinArticle 6 of Directive 91/692/EEC (
2). The
questionnaire or outline shall be sent to the Member States six months
before the start of the period covered by the report. The report shall be
made to the Commission within nine months of the end of the three-year period covered by it.
The first report shall cover the period 1995 to 1997 inclusive.1986L0278 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 003.001 — 6
(1) OJ L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23.
(2) OJ No L 377, 31. 12. 1991, p. 48.▼M2
▼B
▼M1
▼M1
The Commission shall publish a Community report on the implementa-
tion of the Directive within nine months of receiving the reports fromthe Member States.
Article 18
This Directive is addressed to the Member States.1986L0278 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 003.001 — 7
▼B
▼B
ANNEX I A
LIMIT VALUES FOR CONCENTRATIONS OF HEAVY METALS IN
SOIL
(mg/kg ofdry matter in arepresentative sample,asdefinedinAnnexIIC,
ofsoilwithapHof6to7)
Parameters Limit values (1)
Cadmium 1 to 3
Copper (2) 50 to 140
Nickel (2)3 0 t o 7 5
Lead 50 to 300
Zinc (2) 150 to 300
Mercury 1 to 1,5Chromium (
3)—
(1) Member States may permit the limit values they fix to be exceeded inthe case of the
use of sludge on land which at the time of notification of this Directive is dedicated to
the disposal of sludge but onwhich commercial food crops are bein g grownexclu-sively for animal consumption. Member States must inform the Commission of thenumber and type of sites concerned. They must also seek to ensure that there is noresulting hazard to human health or the environment.
(
2) Member States may permit the limit values they fix to be exceeded inrespect of these
parameters onsoil with a pH con sisten tly higher than7. The maximum authorized
concentrations of these heavy metals must in no case exceed those values by morethan 50 %. Member States must also seek to ensure that there is no resulting hazardto human health or the environment and in particular to ground water.
(
3) It is not possible at this stage to fix limit values for chromium. The Council will fix
these limit values later onthe basis of proposals to be submitted by the Commission ,
within one year following notification of this Directive.1986L0278 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 003.001 — 8
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ANNEX I B
LIMIT VALUES FOR HEAVY-METAL CONCENTRATIONS IN
SLUDGEFORUSEINAGRICULTURE
(mg/kgofdrymatter)
Parameters Limit values
Cadmium 20 to 40
Copper 1 000 to 1 750
Nickel 300 to 400
Lead 750 to 1 200
Zinc 2 500 to 4 000
Mercury 16 to 25
Chromium (1)—
(1) It is not possible at this stage to fix limit values for chromium. The Council will fix
these limit values later onthe basis of proposals to be submitted by the Commissionwithin one year following notification of this Directive.1986L0278 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 003.001 — 9
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ANNEX I C
LIMIT VALUES FOR AMOUNTS OF HEAVY METALS WHICH MAY
BE ADDED ANNUALLY TO AGRICULTURAL LAND, BASED ON A
10-YEARAVERAGE
(kg/ha/yr)
Parameters Limit values (1)
Cadmium 0,15
Copper 12
Nickel 3
Lead 15
Zinc 30
Mercury 0,1
Chromium (2)—
(1) Member States may permit these limit values to be exceeded inthe case of the use of
sludge on land which at the time of notification of this Directive is dedicated to thedisposal of sludge but onwhich commercial food crops are bein g grownexclusively
for animal consumption. Member States must inform the Commission of the number
and type of sites concerned. They must also ensure that there is no resulting hazard tohuman health or the environment.
(
2) It is not possible at this stage to fix limit values for chromium. The Council will fix
these limit values later onthe basis of proposals to be submitted by the Commission
within one year following notification of this Directive.1986L0278 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 003.001 — 10
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ANNEX II A
SLUDGEANALYSIS
1. As a rule, sludge must be analyzed at least every six months. Where changes
occur in the characteristics of the waste water being treated, the frequency of
the analyses must be increased. If the results of the analyses do not vary
significantly over a full year, the sludge must be analyzed at least every 12
months.
2. In the case of sludge from the treatment plants referred to in Article 11, if a
sludge analysis has not been carried out in the 12 months preceding the
implementation, in each Member State, of this Directive, an analysis must
be carried out within 12 months of such implementation, or, where appro-
priate, within six months of the decision authorizing the use in agriculture
of sludge from such a plant. Member States shall decide on the frequency
of further analyses on the basis of the results of the initial analysis, any
changes in the nature of treated waste water and any other relevant factors.
3. Subject to the provisions of paragraph 4, analysis should cover the following
parameters:
— dry matter, organic matter,
— pH,— nitrogen and phosphorus,— cadmium, copper, nickel, lead, zinc, mercury, chromium.
4. In the case of copper, zinc and chromium, where it has been shown, to the
satisfaction of the competent authority of the Member State concerned that
they are either not present at all or present only in negligible quantities in
the waste water treated by the sewage plant, Member States shall decide on
the frequency of the analyses to be carried out.1986L0278 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 003.001 — 11
▼B
ANNEX II B
SOILANALYSIS
1. Whenever sludge other than sludge from the treatment plants referred to in
Article 11 is used, Member States must first ensure that the heavy metal
content of the soil does not exceed the limit values laid down in accordance
with Annex IA. For this purpose, Member States shall decide what analyses
to carry out, taking account of available scientific data on soil characteristics
and homogeneity.
2. Member States shall decide on the frequency of further analyses, taking
account of the metal content of the soil prior to the use of sludge, the quan-
tity and composition of the sludge used and any other relevant factors.
3. Analysis should cover the following parameters:
— pH,
— cadmium, copper, nickel, lead, zinc, mercury and chromium.1986L0278 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 003.001 — 12
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ANNEX II C
SAMPLINGANDANALYSISMETHODS
1.Soilsampling
The representative soil samples for analysis should normally be made up by
mixing together 25 core samples taken over an area not exceeding 5 hectares
which is farmed for the same purpose.
The samples must be takento a depth of 25 cm un less the depth of the
surface soil is less thanthat value; however, the samplin g depth inthe latter
case must not be less than 10 cm.
2.Sludgesampling
Sludge must be sampled after processing, but before delivery to the user, and
should be representative of the sludge production.
3.Methodsofanalysis
Analysis for heavy metals must be carried out following strong acid diges-
tion. The reference method of analysis must be that of atomic absorption
spectrometry and the limit of detection for each metal should be no greater
than10 % of the appropriate limit value.1986L0278 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 003.001 — 13