Dillo Dirt
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Dillo Dirt is a
compost Compost is a mixture of ingredients used as plant fertilizer and to improve soil's physical, chemical, and biological properties. It is commonly prepared by Decomposition, decomposing plant and food waste, recycling organic materials, and man ...
made by the City of Austin,
Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
since 1989. It was the first program of its kind in the state and one of the oldest in the nation. Dillo Dirt is named after the
nine-banded armadillo The nine-banded armadillo (''Dasypus novemcinctus''), also called the nine-banded long-nosed armadillo or common long-nosed armadillo, is a species of armadillo native to North America, North, Central America, Central, and South America, making ...
''(Dasypus novemcinctus)'', which is a
mammal A mammal () is a vertebrate animal of the Class (biology), class Mammalia (). Mammals are characterised by the presence of milk-producing mammary glands for feeding their young, a broad neocortex region of the brain, fur or hair, and three ...
native to Texas. It is also a
trademark A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a form of intellectual property that consists of a word, phrase, symbol, design, or a combination that identifies a Good (economics and accounting), product or Service (economics), service f ...
ed product of the City of Austin Water Department. The unique difference between Dillo Dirt and normal compost is that it contains treated municipal
sewage sludge Sewage sludge is the residual, semi-solid material that is produced as a by-product during sewage treatment of industrial or municipal wastewater. The term "septage" also refers to sludge from simple wastewater treatment but is connected to si ...
along with yard trimmings collected curbside by the City of Austin Resource Recovery Department. These are combined and composted to create Dillo Dirt. Despite this fact, Dillo Dirt meets all
Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency requirements for "unrestricted" use, which even includes vegetable gardens. The heat generated in composting () is sufficient to virtually eliminate human and plant pathogens. After active composting for more than a month, the compost is "cured" for several months, and then screened to produce the finished product. According to the City of Austin, Dillo Dirt contains levels of heavy metals including arsenic, cadmium, copper, lead, mercury, molybdenum, nickel, selenium, and zinc. In a separate toxicological analysis of Dillo Dirt, levels of the following pollutants were found: beta-BHC, DDE,
dieldrin Dieldrin is an organochlorine compound originally produced in 1948 by J. Hyman & Co, Denver, as an insecticide. Dieldrin is closely related to aldrin, which reacts further to form dieldrin. Aldrin is not toxic to insects; it is oxidized in the i ...
, endrin aldehyde, benzo(b)fluoranthene, dibenz(a,h)anthracene, benzo(a)anthracene, indeno(1,2,3-cd)pyrene, and bis(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate. Very few tests have been carried out on Dillo Dirt, so its average pollutant, radioactivity, and carcinogen levels are generally unknown.


Controversy

Some opponents of the use and sale of Dillo Dirt claim that it contains above-normal amounts of heavy metals and
fluoride Fluoride (). According to this source, is a possible pronunciation in British English. is an Inorganic chemistry, inorganic, Monatomic ion, monatomic Ion#Anions and cations, anion of fluorine, with the chemical formula (also written ), whose ...
that will inevitably find their way back into the human food supply. The city, however, states that the metal levels are well below the federal allowable levels. The city does not test for radioactivity or pharmaceutical residue because it is cost prohibitive. Since people routinely flush medications down the toilet against the city's recommendation, Dillo Dirt may contain pharmaceutical residue in some batches. Some medical residue is radioactive from treating cancer patients. Prior to the Austin City Limits Music Festival, held at Zilker Park in Austin on October 4, 2009, the park's soil was resurfaced and amended with Dillo Dirt. During the festival, heavy rains created a large amount of sludgy surface mud, which some concertgoers claim caused them health issues, such as
skin rashes A rash is a change of the skin that affects its color, appearance, or texture. A rash may be localized in one part of the body, or affect all the skin. Rashes may cause the skin to change color, itch, become warm, bumpy, chapped, dry, cracke ...
, but in the end no conclusive evidence that the Dillo Dirt caused any problems was determined.{{cite web , url=http://www.statesman.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blogs/austin/health/entries/2009/10/15/dillo_dirt_rash_call_health_de.html , title=Dillo Dirt rash? Call health department at 972-5555 , access-date=2010-04-09 , archive-date=2009-10-18 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091018062714/http://www.statesman.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blogs/austin/health/entries/2009/10/15/dillo_dirt_rash_call_health_de.html , url-status=dead The local
Austin American Statesman The ''Austin American-Statesman'' is the major daily newspaper for Austin, the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is owned by Hearst Communications. The distribution of the following ''The New York Times'', ''The Washington Post'', ''As ...
newspaper ran an article advising anyone affected to call the health department.


See also

*
Biosolids Biosolids are solid organic matter recovered from a sewage treatment process and used as fertilizer. In the past, it was common for farmers to use animal manure to improve their soil fertility. In the 1920s, the farming community began also to us ...


References


External links


Dillo Dirt FAQ at the City of Austin website

Uses and Application Rates of Dillo Dirt
Composting Economy of Austin, Texas