Patent ID: 7322152

Claim:
A method for producing fertile indigenous top soil from spent water-based drilling mud wherein the fertile indigenous top soil possesses similar microbial and enzyme characteristics as soil at a well site, the method comprising the steps of: admixing effective amounts of spent water-based drilling mud, mature compost, organic fertilizer, top soil from the well site and ion exchange compounds containing soil conditioners wherein the ion exchange compounds contain nitrogen, calcium and magnesium minerals and combinations thereof which are capable of displacing or bonding chloride ions absorbed on the surface of clay mineral colloids present in the spent water-based drilling mud to provide a mixture having a pH in a range of from about 7 to about 9.5 and containing spent water-based drilling mud, from about 30 to about 150 volume percent mature compost, from about 5 to 20 volume percent organic fertilizer, from about 5 to 20 volume percent top soil from the well site and an effective amount of the ion exchange compounds containing soil conditioners wherein the ion exchange compounds contain nitrogen, calcium and magnesium minerals and combinations thereof to displace or bond chloride ions absorbed on the surface of mineral colloids present in the spent water-based drilling mud and wherein each volume percent is based on the volume of the spent water-based drilling mud present in the mixture; stirring the mixture for a period of time effective to form a substantially homogenous mixture; and drying the substantially homogenous mixture so as to provide fertile indigenous top soil possessing similar microbial and enzyme characteristics as top soil at the well site from which the spent aqueous drilling mud was obtained.