In the western Oregon cities of Springfield and Eugene, a successful program provides land-applied biosolids to local farmers, mainly for growing grasses. But 10 years ago, the Metropolitan Wastewater Management Commission (MWMC), which serves the two cities and parts of Lane County, began diversifying.Facing concerns that farmer customers might be less available someday, the commission took the creative step of planting its own tree farm called the Biocycle Farm. The project offered a new use for biosolids and now takes about 20 percent of the wastewater treatment plant’s output. “One of the values of the tree farm is that it is
