Systems and methods for treating wastewater and providing class A sludge

1. A method of controlling the age of a microbial population in treating an influent wastewater stream, the method comprising:

a. in a wastewater treatment system having an influent of wastewater containing pollutants, the wastewater treatment system comprising a first treatment device, a second treatment device and a third treatment device; wherein the wastewater flows from the first treatment device to the second treatment device to the third treatment device;

b. adding a plurality of microbes to the wastewater treatment system at a controlled and predetermined dosing rate; the microbes selected to remove the pollutants from the wastewater; wherein the plurality of microbes added is at a concentration of from about 10 3 cfu/ml to about 10 13 cfu/ml; the microbes never being frozen or freeze dried, and having a D50 age of less than 14 days old;

c. wherein the dosing rate maintains the D50 age of the microbes in the wastewater in the wastewater treatment system at less than 20 days old; and,

d. whereby the pollutants in the wastewater are reduced providing an effluent having pollutants as measured by BOD and TSS reduced by at least about 90%.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the wastewater treatment system has a throughput of about 5 MGD to about 40 MGD.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the wastewater treatment system has a throughput of about 20 MGD to about 100 MGD.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the wastewater treatment system has a throughput of greater than 10 MGD.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the wastewater treatment system has a throughput of greater than 100 MGD.

6. The method of claim 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 or 5 , wherein the microbes are added to the second treatment device.

7. The method of claim 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 or 5 , wherein the microbes are added to the third treatment device.

8. The method of claim 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 or 5 , wherein the microbes are added to at least two of the treatment devices at a dose rate for each such treatment device; whereby the dosing rate to the wastewater treatment system is cumulative of the dose rates for each such treatment device.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the wastewater treatment system has a throughput of about 200 MGD to about 300 MGD and comprises a fourth treatment device;

a. wherein the first treatment device comprises screens and a girt chamber, whereby large particles, plastic and girt are removed from the wastewater;

b. wherein the second treatment device comprises a basin;

c. wherein the third treatment device comprises a settling tank; wherein a return stream comprising an activated sludge is flowed to the second treatment device; wherein the effluent is flowed from the third treatment device;

d. wherein the fourth treatment device comprises a holding tank; wherein sludge from the third treatment device is flowed to the fourth treatment device; wherein the sludge is thickened in the fourth treatment device.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the microbes are added to the second treatment device.

11. The method of claim 9 , wherein the microbes are added to the third treatment device.

12. The method of claim 9 , wherein the microbes are added to the second and third treatment devices; whereby the dose rate is cumulative of a dose rate for each treatment device.

13. The method of claim 9 , wherein the sludge has a fecal coliform level of less than 1,000 most probable number (MPN) per gram of total solids (dry weight), and a Salmonella sp. bacteria level of less than 3 MPN per 4 grams total solids (dry weight).

14. The method of claim 9 , wherein a dose of microbes is added to the fourth treatment device.

15. The method of claim 9 , wherein the second treatment device does not have oxygen added to it.

16. A method of producing class A sludge without the need for disinfectant processing, the method comprising:

a. obtaining sludge from an activated sludge wastewater treatment plant;

b. flowing the sludge into a settling tank;

c. adding microbes to the settling tank, wherein the microbes are selected to degrade pollutants in the sludge; wherein the microbes have not been frozen or freeze dried; whereby the microbes degrade the pollutants in the sludge;

d. holding the sludge in the settling tank for a holding period;

wherein the holding period is at least 60 days;

e. removing the sludge from the holding tank after the holding period; wherein the removed sludge is a Class A sludge;

whereby during the holding period the sludge is not subjected to a disinfectant process.

17. A method of controlling the age of microbial in treating an influent wastewater stream, the method comprising:

a. in a wastewater treatment system having an influent of wastewater containing pollutants, the wastewater treatment system comprising a first treatment device, a second treatment device and a third treatment device; wherein the wastewater flows from the first treatment device to the second treatment device to the third treatment device;

b. adding a plurality of microbes to the wastewater treatment system at a controlled and predetermined dosing rate; the microbes selected to remove the pollutants from the wastewater; wherein the plurality of microbes added is at a concentration of from about 10 3 cfu/ml to about 10 13 cfu/ml; the microbes never being frozen or freeze dried, and having a D50 age of less than 2 days;

c. wherein the dosing rate maintains the D50 age of the microbes in the wastewater in the wastewater treatment system at less than 4 days old; and,

d. whereby the pollutants in the wastewater are reduced providing an effluent having pollutants as measured by BOD and TSS reduced by at least about 90%.

18. A method of controlling the age of microbial in treating an influent wastewater stream, the method comprising:

a. in a wastewater treatment system having an influent of wastewater containing pollutants, the wastewater treatment system comprising a first treatment device, a second treatment device and a third treatment device; wherein the wastewater flows from the first treatment device to the second treatment device to the third treatment device;

b. adding a plurality of microbes to the wastewater treatment system at a controlled and predetermined dosing rate; the microbes selected to remove the pollutants from the wastewater; the plurality of microbes containing from about 10 3 cfu/ml to about 10 40 cfu/ml; the microbes never being frozen or freeze dried, and having an average age of less than 10 days;

c. wherein the dosing rate maintains the average age of the microbes in the wastewater in the wastewater treatment system at less than 20 days old; and,

d. whereby the pollutants in the wastewater are reduced providing an effluent having pollutants as measured by BOD and TSS reduced by at least about 90%.

19. A method of producing a pathogen free sludge directly from wastewater, without a disinfectant post processing, the method comprising:

a. depositing youthful microbes into an activated sludge; wherein the age is less than 3 weeks old;

b. maintaining the age of the deposited microbes in the activated sludge below a predetermined age;

c. removing solids from the activated sludge, wherein the removed solids comprise at least a portion of the deposited microbes;

d. adding additional youthful microbes to the removed solids and holding the removed solids for a period of 30 to 160 days, whereby a clean sludge is obtaining having less than 0.1 NPM/ml of Salmonella.

20. The method of claim 19 , wherein the clean sludge has less than 2 MPN/mL of fecal coliforms.

21. The method of claim 19 or 20 , wherein the clean sludge has less than 2 MPN/4 dry grams infectious units of culturable cytopathic enteric viruses.

22. The method of claim 19 or 20 , wherein the clean sludge is heavy metal free.

23. The method of claim 19 , wherein the youthful microbes are less than 2 weeks old.

24. The method of claim 23 , wherein the clean sludge has less than 2 MPN/mL of fecal coliforms.

25. The method of claim 23 or 24 , wherein the clean sludge has less than 2 MPN/4 dry grams infectious units of culturable cytopathic enteric viruses.

26. The method of claim 23 or 24 , wherein the clean sludge is heavy metal free.

27. The method of claim 19 , wherein the youthful microbes are less than 5 days old.

28. The method of claim 27 , wherein the clean sludge has less than 2 MPN/mL of fecal coliforms.

29. The method of claim 27 or 28 , wherein the clean sludge has less than 2 MPN/4 dry grams infectious units of culturable cytopathic enteric viruses.

30. The method of claim 27 or 28 , wherein the clean sludge is heavy metal free.