Sustainable sewage sludge management in Morocco: Constraints and solutions

The remarkable development of sanitation in Morocco has inevitably led to the production of sludge generated from wastewater treatment plants in increasing quantities. Consequently, the problem of sludge management becomes persistent and worrying. The aim of this paper was to contribute to the study of sewage sludge management issue in Morocco by identifying the various constraints hampering the sustainable disposal and/or recovery of municipal sewage sludge and drawing up recommendations for the decision-makers. Moreover, in the context of improving by learning from best practices and seeking common solutions regarding this problematic, benchmarking with other countries has been conducted as well. To carry out this study, a methodological approach was defined based on bibliographic research, surveys, interviews and benchmarking. The constraints hampering the sustainable management of sludge are numerous and complex, they have not been technical and environmental but also a regulatory, institutional-organizational and economic-financial nature yet. Therefore, municipalities, government and academia ideally would be encouraged to participate in the decision-making process regarding the management of sewage sludge. Technical solutions, when coupled with stakeholder participation, can lead to policy implementation with a higher chance of improving the present situation. In the case of Morocco, when comparing with others sludge recovery and disposal routes, land application (reuse in agriculture, silviculture and rehabilitation of degraded soils) remains the most environmentally friendly option, as well as a sustainable and economically viable solution.