Upcoming Events

ANZBP - Lunch & Learn Webinar Series February 2024

Written by Elynn Xu | Dec 11, 2023 4:58:07 AM

Join us for an extra special ANZBP Lunch and Learn Webinar with our guest speakers from Canada and the USA!

Professor Grant Clark (Canada) will outline how he leads the Ecological Engineering Research Group, investigating nature-based technologies for responsible civilisations on small planets.  More than 750,000 dry metric tons of sewage sludge are produced annually in Canada. Instead of landfilling or incinerating the sludge, it is increasingly processed into biosolids and applied to agricultural fields as organic fertiliser. We often assume that the greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) resulting from this practice are net-negative, but this has not been well studied. To help address this research gap, Grant conducted field experiments at sites in Truro (Nova Scotia), Montreal (Quebec), and Edmonton (Alberta). Sewage sludge was either anaerobically digested, composted, or alkaline stabilized. 

Janine Burke-Wells and Ned Beecher (USA) from North East Biosolids & Residuals Association (NEBRA) will discuss how water resource recovery facilities (WRRFs) manage their “waste” solids can have a major impact on their total net greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This presentation will introduce the Biosolids Emissions Assessment Model (BEAM), a calculator tool for getting a handle on your WRRF’s biosolids management GHG emissions.  BEAM*2022 can be used to estimate and compare carbon emissions from up to 10 biosolids management options. Several examples will be cited, showing how using the BEAM can help WRRFs better understand the factors that have the greatest impacts on GHG emissions. Links to key resources and the BEAM*2022 will be provided.

These presentations will followed by Q&A sessions afterwards. We look forward to seeing you in the webinar.  

Meet your presenters:

Presentation
Be Careful What You Ask For: A Wholistic Comparison of Emissions from Biosolids Recycling

Grant Clark
Associate Professor, Department of Bioresource Engineering, McGill University

Grant grew up on a mixed farm in Central Alberta, Canada. He holds an industry-cooperative BSc in Agricultural Engineering (Alberta) and a PhD in Biosystems Engineering (McGill).

He is an Associate Professor of Bioresource Engineering at McGill University, where he leads the Ecological Engineering Research Group. He is an affiliate member of McGill’s Bieler School of Environment and the Trottier Institute for Sustainable Engineering and Design, and a Past President of the Canadian Society for Bioengineering.

His research group has a special interest in the circularization of carbon and nutrient flows through food production and organic waste management systems. They are currently involved in several multi-institutional studies of the carbon footprint of municipal organic waste management operations.

 

Presentation
BEAM -- Accounting for Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Biosolids Management

Janine Burke-Wells
Executive Director, North East Biosolids & Residuals Association (NEBRA)

Janine is the Executive Director of the North East Biosolids & Residuals Association. Prior to joining NEBRA, Janine worked as a public servant for over three decades – 10 years with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and over 20 years in local government where she managed the wastewater systems in two different communities in Rhode Island.

Ms. Burke-Wells has a degree in chemical engineering from the University of Rhode Island and a Master of Public Administration from North-eastern University. She represents the State of Rhode Island to New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission.

Ned Beecher
Independent Consultant on Biosolids and Residuals Management, Research, and Policy, Tamworth, NH, USA

Ned was Executive Director of NEBRA from 1998 to June 2022 then Special Projects Manager tracking research, legislation, and regulations, and providing information to members and the public, authoring articles and papers and making presentations on biosolids management around North America. Since January 2017, he has focused much of his work, on PFAS, and most recently, on leading the National Biosolids Data Project.  

He is now mostly retired, but provides some limited consulting. He received the New England Water Environment Association (NEWEA) Biosolids Management Award in 2015 and the Elizabeth A. Cutone Leadership Award in 2020.  He has an MS in Resource Management from Antioch University and a BA in Geology from Amherst College.  

He has two adult children and lives and gardens (using biosolids) with his wife, Chris Clyne, MS, APRN (ret.), in Tamworth, New Hampshire. His interest in greenhouse gas emissions included co-authoring the BEAModel.

 
 
Event Details
Event type: Webinar
Date: Wednesday, 21 February 2024
Time: 10:00 am to 11:00 am AEDT
Venue:

Webinar - Online

 
 

Please note: the webinar will commence at 10:00 am ( AEDT Time), running for approximately 60 minutes and will include presentations followed by a Q&A.  

A Webinar link will be distributed to registered attendees 24 hours prior - please ensure to diarise and register for now!


For More Information Please Contact:

Esther Micah, Event Manager
P: +61 2 9467 8434 | Email: emicah@awa.asn.au

Locus Liu, International and Industry Program Coordinator
P: +61 2 9467 8430 | Email: lliu@awa.asn.au

 
 
This Lunch & Learn is free for ANZBP Partners
If you are unsure if your organization is an ANZPB partner you can check here:
https://www.biosolids.com.au/advisory-committee/partners/