title: Trace elements in compost regulation: the case of Spain.
abstract: We use the example of the Spanish Decree on Fertilizers (2005) to discuss the need of new horizontal regulations for assessing the quality of all the materials reaching the soil as amendments of fertilizers, in particular in what concerns potentially toxic trace elements in compost. Here it is proposed that the new regulations take into account the following: establishing maximum legal limits for the total loads for each element when compost is added to agricultural soils; establishing the maximum total concentration and bioavailability of each element in the final compost; and that they take into account the soil characteristics for establishing those limits.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Edafoloxía e Química Agrícola, Facultade de Farmacia, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
authors.forename: María Teresa
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Barral
authors.forename: Remigio
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Paradelo
mesh_terms: D005308:Fertilizers / Q000032:analysis* / Q000592:standards*; D033161:Government Regulation; D019216:Metals, Heavy / Q000032:analysis* / Q000633:toxicity; D012722:Sewage / Q000737:chemistry; D012987:Soil / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000592:standards*; D013030:Spain
chemical_list: D005308:Fertilizers; D019216:Metals, Heavy; D012722:Sewage; D012987:Soil