New Plymouth District Council's Bioboost receives international tick of approval

New Plymouth District Council's Bioboost pellets used to enrich turf. Photo/ Supplied

New Plymouth District Council's Bioboost has got an international tick of approval.

The fertiliser, produced at the New Plymouth Wastewater Treatment Plant, has achieved certification to the international quality management systems standard, ISO 9001.

The ISO9001 badge gives consumers more confidence that they are purchasing an independently verified, high quality produce that is safe and effective to use.

"It's been 22 years since we started making Bioboost and 21 years since we started selling it as a fertiliser for residential and commercial garden use," says NPDC Manager Three Waters Mark Hall.

"It's won awards over the years, and adding to that success with this new international mark of quality is great."

The wastewater treatment process produces excess sludge – bugs that eat the waste. The treatment plants thermally dries the sludge and sells the nutrient-rich pellets as Bioboost.

About 8200 tonnes of excess sludge is made into 1870 tonnes of Bioboost every year. In many other local authorities in New Zealand, the biosolids from their wastewater treatment plants end up in a landfill – contributing to New Zealand's greenhouse gas emissions.

"As well as turning a waste product into a useful fertiliser for sale, we avoid having to send more than 270 large trucks per year to the Hampton Downs landfill to dispose of our sludge – a 586km round trip."

Bioboost's international standard is based on a number of quality management principles including strong customer focus, the motivation and implication of top management, the process approach and continual improvement.

NPDC's Bioboost is available at local garden stores and a number of garden centres nationwide.