A Review of
Citrus Wastes and Their Problems
C. W. SHEFFIELD, Director
Orange County Water Conservation Department
Orlando, Florida
R R. McNARY, Retired, Special Consultant
Fiske and Gaye Consulting Engineers
Orlando, Florida
L. D. KILLINGSWORTH, Sanitary Engineer
California Department of Health
Sacramento, California
INTRODUCTION
In the 1500's, oranges were introduced into the United States. Records indicate that citrus fruits were shipped from St. Augustine, Florida sometime in the
1600's. From that time until 1935, shipping consisted only of fresh fruit and posed
little or no waste disposal problem. In 1935, the single-strength juice process
was developed, and in the early forties came the advant of the hot-pack concentration industry. Shortly after World War II, the frozen concentrate process
was perfected as an economically feasible industry. With this new-founded
technique, the citrus industry has grown faster and bigger than anyone had expected. The entire operation of the industry is subjected to whims of adverse
weather conditions as well as numerous diseases which plague the crops. Even
with the severe freezes which occurred during the 1957-58 and 1962-63 seasons,
the number of citrus fruits grown has more than doubled in the last 15 years.
Citrus fruits are normally grown in the states of Florida, California, Texas
and Arizona in the order of their production.
CHARACTERISTICS OF CITRUS WASTE
In the Field
The initial problem in the citrus industry starts in the field. Citrus fruits are
grown in warm, sub-tropical climates and require an excess of rain, hot temperatures, and are usually grown on sandy soil in Florida. Citrus trees are grown on
many other types of soil in other parts of the world. The fruit is harvested between October and June of each year depending upon the type of citrus. In the
hot climates the fruit is very susceptible to spifage, and consequently, must be
processed with the greatest amount of celerity or large losses will occur. To offset any large transportation problem, the processing plants are located within the
various citrus belts. The citrus industry is seasonal and localized to warmer
climates.
Like other fruit industries, citrus requires a tremendous amount of care when
growing if a profit is to be achieved by the grove owner. From this intense care,
two serious pollutional problems have arisen from these groves: the leaching of excess  fertilizer to the watercourses,   and the residual pesticides adhering to the
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