Using waste to reduce slope erosion on road embankments Oña López, Juan José De Osorio Robles, Francisco Embankments Environment Roads Highways “Permission is granted by ICE Publishing to print one copy for personal use. Any other use of these PDF files is subject to reprint fees" (www.transport-ice.com). http://dx.doi.org/10.1680/tran.2006.159.1.15 Urban waste may be used to reduce slope erosion of highway embankments. Whereas different kinds of compost have been tested in the USA for highway revegetation, sewage sludge has been used only for agricultural purposes. This paper presents the results of research carried out in order to study the viability of the application of sewage sludge compared with compost. Test areas measuring 4 m 3 5 m were constructed on a new highway embankment with 2 : 1 and 3 : 2 side slopes in the south of Spain. Crop cover and erosion were evaluated for plots with application of three dosages of compost and three dosages of sludge. Also, the costs of the proposed application are analysed. This treatment costs, on average, 0.24% of the budget for new roads infrastructure, and reduces soil loss by up to 30% on average. Based on these results, compost and sludge can be successfully used to reduce slope erosion on highway embankments. However, standards and specifications are required for their routine application. 2013-04-08T06:47:32Z 2013-04-08T06:47:32Z 2006-02-01 info:eu-repo/semantics/article de Oña, J.; Osorio, F. Using waste to reduce slope erosion on road embankments. Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers- Transport, 159 (1): 15–24 (2006). [http://hdl.handle.net/10481/24390] 0965-092X 1751-7710 doi: 10.1680/tran.2006.159.1.15 http://hdl.handle.net/10481/24390 eng info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess Thomas Telford