Spreading Municipal Sludge on Farm and other Lands: A bibliography of documents and web sites categorized as Government, Research, Reports, Legal, Books, Articles, and Organizations

http://www.citizen.com/news2002/Jan/09/ap0109ae.htm
Thursday, January 10, 2002
Settlement reached in death blamed on sludge

[New Hampshire] GREENLAND (AP) A settlement has been reached in a three-year-old suit by a couple who blamed their adult son's death on sludge spread for fertilizer.

Tom and Joanna Marshall sued Wheelabrator Water Technologies, alleging the treated sewage contributed to the death of Shayne Conner. Conner, 26, died in 1995, weeks after nearly 650 tons of the fertilizer also known as biosolids was spread on a field less than 100 yards from his home.

Wheelabrator later was bought by Synagro Technologies, owner of the Houston-based company that spread the waste.

Terms of the settlement, reached Friday in Rockingham County Superior Court, were not disclosed. The trial was to begin in February.

The company denied the sludge contributed to Conner's death. An autopsy was unable to determine the cause o death, and the coroner who performed the autopsy said there was no evidence to suggest sludge toxins contributed to the man's death, according to the company's lawyers.

An affidavit filed on behalf of Conner;s family by microbiologist Dr. David Lewis refuted testimony by Synagro claiming the toxins from the waste could not have contributed to the death.

Ned Beecher, director of the New England Biosolids and Residuals Association, said in a prepared statement sources such as the National Academy of Sciences have determined that biosolid recycling has proved to provide significant benefits at "negligible risk."

Sewage sludge, separated from liquids during the water treatment process, is used as fertilizer. The only other legal way to dispose of the solid waste is by incinerating it or putting it in landfills.

However, people who live in areas where sludge has been spread have expressed concern that heavy metals, bacteria and other contaminants could end up in streams or groundwater.
-------------------------------------------

WEB SITES reporting on SLUDGE (to be aperiodically updated)
Categorized by Government, Research, Reports, Legal, Books, Articles/Foreign/U.S., Organizations
(This is an extensive but not exhaustive list of publications on this subject.)

For a synopsis of an Olympic Environmental Council report on the City of Port Angeles sludge spreading, scrowl to the very bottom of the bibliography or go to:
http://www.oecprotects.org John Strand reports.


GOVERNMENT
http://www.pwp.lincs.net/sanjour/Sludge1.htm
WILLIAM SANJOUR - US EPA -Former USEPA Branch Chief, Office of Solid Waste responsible for drafting hazardous waste regulations.
*ON LAND APPLICATION OF SEWAGE SLUDGE
*“The 1978-79 Sludge War.”

http://members.aol.com/LewisDaveL/
http://pwp.lincs.net/sanjour/
http://www.essential.org/cchw/nsa/nsaindex.html
NATIONAL SLUDGE ALLIANCE - PURPOSE :     To protect public health and
environment from adverse effects of sludge and process that generate sludge

http://www. niosh.gove See, NIOSH Hazard ID,
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (DHHS (NIOSH) Publication No. 2000-158 (a copy of the Hazard ID
NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY & HEALTH - HAZARD
IDENTIFICATION REPORT -   REGARDING HEALTH HAZARDS FACED BY
SLUDGE WORKERS 
COMPARABLE RISKS TO NEIGHBORS  WHO LIVE  NEAR SLUDGE SITES
http://members.aol.com/ruraleye/niosh/niosh.htm#(11)

http://www.epa.gov/tri/tri99/state/index.htm  (See EPAs Toxics Release Inventory) choice to find out the TRI “ tip of the iceberg” quantity of hazardous industrial chemicals; under federal law, every U.S. business and industry can discharge 33 pounds of hazardous wastes into public sewers every month, without reporting requirements.   [40CFR403.12(p)(2)]
EPA acknowledges that the waste water treatment process reconcentrates ALL of the toxic metals, pathogens, radioactivity and much of the hazardous organic chemicals in the sewage sludge

http://www.heartland.org/environment/mar00/sludge.htm
CDC REPORT WARNS OF SLUDGE DANGER - MARCH 2000

http://www.gsenet.org/library/20rcy/odor-gas.txt
DR. DAVID LEWIS, RESEARCH MICROBIOLOGIST - ODOR-CAUSING GASES
GENERATED BY SEWAGE SLUDGE AND HEALTH IMPACTS:

http://www.enviroweb.org/issues/sludge/radioactivity/gao_radsludge.txt
U.S. GENERAL ACCOUNTING OFFICE - ACTION NEEDED TO CONTROL RADIOACTIVE CONTAMINATION AT SEWAGE TREATMENT PLANTS

http://agcenter.ucdavis.edu/agcenter/niosh/NIOSH_News_1996-03.html#1996-03-05 NIOSH - AIR CONTAMINANTS - COLORADO SLUDGE COMPOSTING FACILITY - CAUSE FOR SERIOUS CONCERN - OCCUPATIONAL EXPOSURE OF EMPLOYEES TO ENDOXTOXINS     1996-03-05

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RESEARCH
http://www.cfe.cornell.edu/wmi/
CORNELL UNIVERSITY WASTE MANAGEMENT INSTITUTE, CENTER FOR THE ENVIRONMENT
The following are a few reports that can be found on this web site.
*The Role of Municipalities in REgulating the Land Application of Sewage Sludges and Septage. E.Z.Harrison & M.M.Eaton, Natural Resources Journal, Winter 2001, Vo. 41, No. 1.
*Growing Food Crops on Sludge-Amended Soils: Problems with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Method of Estimating Toxic Metal Transfer. Murray B. McBride. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, Vol. 17, No. 11, pp. 2274-81, 1998.
*Use of sludges in agriculture and risk of reduction of crop yields. D.R. Bouldin. 1998
Maximum cumulative loads are estimates.
Consequence: if cumulative loads cause yield reduction, these persist even if additions of sludge metals are stopped.
Guidelines vary by magnitudes depending on who develops them.
*Molybdenum Uptake by Forage Crops Grown on Sewage Sludge-Amended Soils in the Field and Greenhouse. (Alkaline-stabilized vs. dewatered.) M.B.McBride, et al. J. of Environmental Quality, Vol 29, No. 3, pp 848-54, May-June 2000.
*Effect of sludge-processing mode, soil texture and soil pH on metal mobility in undisturbed soil columns under accelerated loading. B.K. Richards, et al. environmental Pollution 109 (2000) 327-46.
*Effect of Processing Mode on Trace Elements in Dewatered Sludge Products. b.K. Richards, et al. J. Environ. Qual. 26:782-88 (1997)
*Trace Metal Retention in the Incorporation Zone of Land-Applied Sludge. T.S. Steenhuis, et al. Environ. Sci. Technol. 1999, 33, 1171-4.
*Soluble Trace Metals in Alkaline Stabilized Sludge Products. M.B.McBride. J. Environ. Qual. 27:278-84 (1998).
the results suggest potential for the transport of certain heavy metals from land-applied alkaline sludges into surface waters and shallow groundwater in some situations.
*Mass balance and distribution of sludge-borne trace elements in a silt loam soil following long-term application of sewage sludge. P.Baveye, et al. The Science of the Total Environment. Elsevier, 227 (1999) 13-28.
*Metal mobility at an old, heavily loaded sludge application site. B.K. Richards, et al. Environmental Pollution Elsevier, 99 (1998) 365-377.
Preferential flow and metal complexation with soluble organics apparently allow leaching without easily detectable readsorption in the subsoil.
*Movement of Heavy Metals through Undisturbed and Homogenized Soil columns. V.J.Camobreco. Soil Science, 11/96, V.161, No. 11.
Previous laboratory metal leaching studies performed on homogeneous soils might have greatly underestimated metal mobility in the field;
preferential flow can accelerate metal leaching through soils.
*Land application of sewage sludges: an appraisal of the US regulations. E.Z. Harrison. Int. J. Environment and Pollution, V.11, No. 1, 1999.
*Toxic Metal Accumulation from Agricultural Use of Sludge: Are USEPA Regulations Protective? M.B.McBride. J. Environ.Qual., 24:5-`8 (1995)
The ultimate impact of toxic metals from sewage sludges at levels approaching the proposed USEPA limits on various soil-crop systems is potentially harmful.

http://www.penweb.org/issues/sludge/health-odor.htm
POTENTIAL HEALTH EFFECTS FROM ODORS OF CAFOS (concentrated animal feeding operations) AND SLUDGE COMPOSTING FACILITIES AND LAND SPREADING OF SEWAGE SLUDGE by DR. SUSAN SCHIFFMAN, DUKE UNIVERSITY, AND DR. JOHN WALKER, US EPA, LEAD AUTHORS - as published in the Journal of Agromedicine, November 2000
http://members.aol.com/rccouncil/ourpage/no89.htm
RACHEL CARSON COUNCIL -
( 5 ) Earthworms + Sewage Sludge
Toxic Timebombs Increasing concentrations of heavy metals were found in earthworms from an old field after long-term nutrient enrichment with a sewage sludge product. (Brewer, Bull. Envir. Contam. Tox. 1995, 54:120-127)

http://members.aol.com/neurosite/sewage.htm
Sewage Sludge and Neurotoxicity, by Raymond Singer, PhD, P.A.

http://www.ourstolenfuture.org
Our Stolen Future, over 170 separate pages of analysis, fully text-searchable;
wealth of information about the science and policy of endocrine disruption that has unfolded since 1996, when the book was first published in English, with regular updates as new research emerges. There is a lot of very recent material about phthalate contamination (the CDC's report, just published), current status of the low dose debate, etc.

Directions in Science (2002) 1, 10 13 Published January 9, 2002
Synthetic Organic Pollutants in Land-Applied Sewage Sludges
Robert C. Hale* and Mark J. La Guardia
Department of Environmental Science, Virginia Institute of Marine Science, College of
William and Mary, Gloucester Point, Virginia

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REPORTS
http://www.sierraclub.org/policy/conservation/solidwaste.asp
January 2002. Sierra Club Guidance on the Land Application of Sewage Sludges

http://www.oecprotects.com (See John Strand papers)
www.whistleblowers.org (click on Sludge)
EPA ADMINISTRATOR CAROL BROWNER URGED TO INVESTIGATE SCIENTIFIC
MISCONDUCT IN APPROVING SLUDGE REGULATIONS, JULY 13, 2000;
JULY 28, 2000 - BROWNER URGED TO SUSPEND LAND SPREADING OF SEWAGE SLUDGE

Redefining Sludge: Activists search for answers about sludge and its
impact on our food supply. The Workbook. A publication of the
Southwest Research and Information Center.   Summer 1998. P.O. Box
4524, 105 Stanford SE, Alburquerque, NM 87106. Tel 505 346-1455.
Email: THEWORKBOOK@igc.org.</A><P>
RADIOACTIVITY IN SEWAGE SLUDGE -
http://p3.acadia.net/cbm/Rad8f.html#Sewage

http://www.rachel.org/bulletin/index.cfm?St=2
Rachel #736: Here We Go Again: PBDEs
Rachel's Weekly, A new US Waste Policy Emerges, numbers 560 and 561; and Excrement Happens, numbers 644 and 645, by Peter Montague. Keyword: Sewage Sludge.

http://www.friendsofthecreek.org/azreport.htm
"HAZARDS FROM PATHOGENIC MICROORGANISMS IN LAND-DISPOSED SEWAGE SLUDGE" By Timothy Straub, Ian Pepper & Charles Gerba -

http://www.mindfully.org/Pesticide/Sewage-Sludge-Pros-Cons.htm
REBECCA RENNER - OCTOBER 2000 - ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY: Sewage Sludge, Pros & Cons Rebecca Renner / Environmental Science & Technology V.34 - I.19 1oct00</A> The United States and the European nations are far apart on their views of what constitutes safe management.

http://www.aiha.org/abstract/6bioapos.html
DEWATERING SLUDGE USING BELT PRESS CAN CONTRIBUTE SIGNIFICANTLY TO AIRBORNE GRAM NEGATIVE BACTERIA -

http://www.ewg.org/pub/home/Reports/
Environmental Working Group. SludgeMemo/sludge.html Dumping Sewage Sludge On Organic Farms? Why USDA Should Just Say No, August 1998.

http://www.cqs.com/esludge.htm CQS's Health Alert: The Sludge Story

http://www.safesoil.com/case.htm 
Sludge on Farmland: Case Studies, Canaan, New Hampshire.

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LEGAL
http://www.toxlaw.com/>http://www.toxlaw.com/
TOXBOARD: The Toxic Tort Bulletin Board. Toxic Tort Attorney Resources

Subject: farm fertilizer with plutonium: Whistleblower Ruling Now Posted On-line
http://www.oalj.dol.gov/public/wblower/decsn/97sdw07c.htm
The Department of Labor has now posted Chief District Judge David W. DiNardi's September 18, 2001 ruling in the whistleblower case Anderson v Metro Wastewater Reclamation District at its government web site, for those who wish to review the entire, 80-page decision.  The matter at issue involved the sewage district s plan since enacted, unfortunately, despite unanimous public opposition to flush a plutonium-contaminated Superfund Site in Colorado, the Lowry Landfill, to public sewers to a non-NRC-licensed facility whose workers are not even protected under OSHA, for redistribution as fertilizer on farm land growing crops for human consumption, and in bagged material marketed commercially as MetroGro!" , for use on home gardens.;color:blue;mso-color-alt:windowtext'>
Adrienne Anderson
University of Colorado at Boulder
Environmental Studies Program, Instructor
Ethnic Studies Department,  Research
CB 339
Boulder, Colorado 80309
Voice Mail:  (303)492-2952

http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/111601/met_7844463.html
EPA never reported polluted property
Friday, November 16, 2001
Sites on Dee Dot Ranch now being investigated
By Shawna Sundin, Times-Union staff writer

http://www.ewg.org
For many decades, farmers of various cultures have used human waste to nourish their
soils. This system of soil replenishment is an example of a closed nutrient cycle that
avoids discharging nutrients into bodies of water or incinerating wastes. In principle,
the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP) supports the creation of closed
nutrient cycles, particularly for nitrogen and phosphorus. However, some farmers in the
United States are using fertilizer derived from waste water treatment processes which
may be contaminated with toxic industrial compounds such as mercury, cadmium,
lead, dioxins as well as pathogens and radioactive material. IATP believes it is
important that all farmers and consumers should have access to agricultural inputs


http://www.nctimes.com/news/2001/20010207/dddd.html
Residents win court fight
AGNES DIGGS, Staff Writer
TEMESCAL CANYON ---- It was almost like a breath of fresh air for Diana Schramm, who learned unofficially Tuesday that she and her Temescal Canyon neighbors have apparently prevailed in their legal battle against a composing plant. The group filed 37 individual small-claims lawsuits against Synagro Technologies Inc. for $5,000 each, the maximum allowable amount, charging the company with creating a public nuisance. A clerk at the Riverside County Superior Court in Corona who declined to be identified confirmed the 37 cases were settled, although no official notices have been sent yet.

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BOOKS
http://www.cqs.com/toxsludg.htm
The Sludge Hits the Fan, Chapter 8 from Toxic Sludge Is Good For You,
JOHN STAUBER AND SHELDON RAMPTON
Common Courage Press,1995

http://www.prwatch.org/Q3-95/sludge.html
PR Watch.: Let Them Eat Sludge, by JOHN STAUBER AND SHELDON RAMPTON

http://www.seattletimes.com/extra/browse/html97/altfert_070397.html
FEAR IN THE FIELDS: How Hazardous Wastes Become Fertilizer
Duff Wilson, Seattle Times.

http://whyfiles.news.wisc.edu/063recycle/toxic.html 
The Why Files: Science Behind the News,
Farm Fields: Ideal Resting Place for Toxic Waste? A summary of Duff Wilson's expose of recycling of industrial waste in commercial fertilizers.

http://www.weblife.org/humanure/chapter5.html
"A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A TURD" -

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ARTICLES/FOREIGN
http://www.safer-world.org/e/topics/sludge.htm
FROM THE DUMP TO THE DISH!

ENGLISH SLUDGE SITE: http://members.aol.com/wwanglia/frameq.htm  

http://www.geocities.com/dungwarrior_2000/poopscoop.html
THE P.O.O.P SCOOP - ONTARIO, CANADA - PEOPLE OPPOSED TO ONTARIO
POLLUTION! - NO SLUDGE!

http://www.isn.net/hcwg/bara/index.html  
CANADA - PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND - OPPOSITION TO SEWAGE SLUDGE COMPOSTING FACILITY

http://www.yesic.com/~dietlein/sludge/index.htm
DAVE'S SLUDGE PAGE - THE SLUDGE ISSUE IN SCUGOG TOWNSHIP, ONTARIO, CANADA

Janary 24, 2002, Toronto Sludge Fertilizer Ordered Removed from Farm
January 29, 2002  Sale of Edmonton Co compost Halted due to Violations of Fertilizer Act 
Maureen Reilly 416 922-4099
Sierra Club of Canada, Canada Sludge Issues Chair
http://www.safesoil.com
A Swedish Sludge Web Site, in English and Swedish

Svend Erik Jepsen, Danish
EPA. Phone: +45 3266 0365. E-mail: sej@mst.dk
Edited 31. October 2001
Denmark phased out Nonylphenols
Danish Environment & Energy Newsletter
ISSN 1600-6909
No 11 - November 2001

Sewage sludge: Still useful as fertilizer on fields
Nonylphenol - a metabolite of the nonylphenolethoxylate group - is toxic to soil organisms and aquatic organisms, reportedly having hormone-like effects. It was earlier used in washing and cleaning products and as an ancillary substance in pesticides. Thanks to a 1995 voluntary agreement it has since been phased out. The Danish EPA has launched a number of projects to develop alternatives in other products, such as industrial paints. Municipal councils have also spotlighted this group of substances, and have made major efforts to trace the sources of consumption and emissions. Sewage sludge with a high content of hazardous and xenobiotic substances may not be applied to fields.

http://ens-news.com/ens/sep2001/2001L-09-17-04.html
SWISS TO BAN FERTILIZING WITH SLUDGE
BERN, Switzerland, September 17, 2001 (ENS) - Switzerland is to end the disposal of sewage sludge through agricultural spreading by 2005, it emerged on Friday. The move will make it the first and only country in Europe to stop recycling sludge onto farms, with pressure still on across the EU for greater land spreading.

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ARTICLES/U.S.

http://www.post-gazette.com/healthscience/20000611sludge4.asp
http://www.cqs.com/sewage.htm
http://www.nightbreakers.org/ - ENDOTOXINS FROM SLUDGE COMPOST
http://www.emagazine.com/may-june_1996/0596curr_sludge.html

Internal probe cites EPA for lack of research, reaction to concerns about recycled sewage JOHN SOLOMON, Associated Press Writer, Thursday, February 7, 2002 Breaking News

The EPA and the new plagues, by James W. Bynum, March 31, 1999
http://www.insightmag.com/archive/200005170.shtml

SHEILA CHERRY - INSIGHT MAGAZINE - "TOXIC WASTE USED AS FERTILIZER?" - APRIL 2000
http://www.insightmag.com/archive/200007246.shtml

07/24/2000 - EPAs Secret Role in Toxic Sludge
EPA ADMITS: SIGNIFICANT POTENTIAL FOR INDIVIDUALS EXPOSED TO SLUDGE TO DEVELOP CANCER, NO RISK ASSESSMENT DONE FOR PATHOGENS; "EPA AND STATE AUTHORITIES CHARGED WITH ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION ARE JUST TOO COZY WITH THE WASTE INDUSTRY THEY ARE SUPPOSED TO BE REGULATING."
*http://www.insightmag.com/archive/200007246.shtml
InsightMag.com Sheila R. Cherry

http://209.118.145.183/sludge/hardinonsludge.htm
by Pete Hardin. TOXIC METALS, PATHOGENS, LEGAL LIABILITIES; "FREE" SEWAGE SLUDGE CARRIES HUGE PRICE

http://www.free-times.com/sludge.html
"SEWAGE SLUDGE - TOXIC BRE

http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20010711/hl/fish_1.html
Long-Lasting Pollutant Found in Fertilizer, Fish
By Keith Mulvihill
http://www.monitor.net/rachel/r614.html  Drugs in the Water, Rachel's Weekly #614. "Sewage sludge provides a major pathway by which drugs enter the environment.  Until the drug problem is understood and controlled, it provides a solid scientific rationale for labeling sewage sludge a dangerous soil amendment, the use of which should be forbidden."

“CDC sounds a warning on risks of sludge.” John Tuohy, USA TODAY. 7/12/00.
“EPA rules divide sludge - which it calls biosolids - into two categories, depending on how it is treated and cleaned. The more expensive Class A treatment kills all the pathogens that live in the waste. The more common Class B treatment kills most, but not all, the pathogens. The CDC is now recommending that all sludge be cleaned to class A standards because of the risk that diseases could be transmitted through the Class B sludge.” [NOTE: PA City WWTP uses Class B]

http://cnnfn.com/hotstories/busunu/9706/25/hazard_one_pkg
CNN's Financial News Network Three-part story on sewage sludge; June 25 - 27, 1997:
Part One, More Than a Bad Smell
http://cnnfn.com/hotstories/busunu/9706/26/hazard_two_pkg/
Part Two, Denver Sludge is Stinky Biz Part
http://cnnfn.com/hotstories/busunu/9706/27/hazard_three_pkg/#TOP
Part Three, Selling Sludge is a Sticky Operation

http://www.life.ca/nl/69/sludge.html 
Sludge on Your Supper Table, Natural Life, August 23, 1999.

http://www.riles.org/musings23.htm
ReSource Institute for Low Entropy Systems editorials on sludge:
Laundering Toxic Waste http://www.riles.org/musings1.htm ;
Something Stinks in the EPA, Organic Food and Sewage Sludge http://www.riles.org/musings2.htm ;
Can You Clean-Up Sludge? A Correspondence 

http://www.salon.com
Free drugs from your faucet. How did tiny amounts of nearly every drug under the sun get into our drinking water -- and what are they doing to us? Mark D. Uehling. Oct. 25, 2001

http://www.nwi.org/PressReleases/23March99.html
NATIONALWILDERNESS INSTITUTE: " EPA DECISIONS DRIVEN BY POLITICS -
AGENCY RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY HARMFUL HEALTH EFFECTS OF SLUDGE"

http://iisd1.iisd.ca/pcdf/meadows/sludge.htm
SLUDGE BY ANY OTHER NAME CAN STILL BE A PROBLEM - BY DONELLA MEADOWS
    
ALABAMA -
http://www.al.com/news/mobile/Mar2000/28-a344197a.htmlA
RESIDENTS CLAIM HEALTH PROBLEMS FROM SLUDGE EXPOSURE
Gary Schaefer, head of a newly formed group called Citizens Against Pollution, said Monday that the report strengthens his organization's contention that health concerns about the sludge have been overlooked by the EPA and the Alabama Department of Environmental Management. (THIS CASE INVOLVES BIOGRO)

CALIFORNIA -
ttp://www.rinconpublishing.com/Fieldtalksample.html  
TOP TEN FARMING STORIES OF 2001:  
10. SJV COUNTIES SET STRICTER CONTROLS ON SLUDGE
Kern, Kings and Tulare counties all set new standards that will block the use of Class B sludge on non-food crops as fertilizer. The sludge comes from Los Angeles and Orange counties that are in need of getting rid of waste materials. Riverside County has also stopped receiving sludge shipments from the urban counties. The southern SJV county ordinances will be contested in court, but the sanitation districts will also look at other disposal alternatives, among them carting the sludge to Arizona, paying to treat it to become Class A compost which they can sell, and finding other methods of disposal, as in the city of LA's plan to shove it down old oil wells.

COLORADO -
http://www.riles.org/musings5.htm,
Radioactive Sludge in Denver http://www.riles.org/musings9.htm ;

GEORGIA -
DAIRY FARMS RUINED BY SLUDGE - LAWSUIT FILED:
Click on SEARCH. SUBJECT:  "1998 news and sports stories" - type "sewage sludge" as your search term. Do it again for Subject:  "1999 news and sports stories" http://www.augustachronicle.com

HAWAII -
HAWAII - NICHOLAS NATALE - ANOTHER SLUDGE VICTIM? http://www.hookele.com/mt/forum/messages/281.html

IOWA -
FEBRUARY 07, 2002
Iowa Sen. Expresses Sewage Concern
By RIYAD MATHEW , Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) ‚ Iowa Sen. Charles Grassley expressed concern on Thursday
about government oversight of the spreading of recycled sewage across the country. ``As a farmer and a senator who has many constituents living in rural areas,'' Grassley wrote to the Environmental Protection Agency, ``I am especially concerned that the EPA's regulations could put such people at risk.'' The letter came in light of a draft report by the inspector general of the EPA that said the government had done too little research when trying to make sure that humans are safe from the viruses, bacteria and toxins that can exist in sludge.

KANSAS -
Kansas State alumnus warns of salmonella attacks.” Matt Moine, Special to The Capital-Journal. 11/19/01.
“Although chlorine routinely kills salmonella bacteria in public water supplies, food animals can become infected by ingesting pathogens in water discharged from municipal sewage plants, then ‘shedding’ the disease to humans via meat and poultry products.”
http://cjonline.com/stories/111901/kan_ksusalmonella.shtml
LOUISIANA -
Sludge Story: Wasting Away In Lake Okeechobee
Robert P. King, Palm Beach Post
12-27-1999
Who's polluting Lake Okeechobee? The list may include anyone who flushes a toilet in Boca Raton, Wellington and Jupiter - along with people in Walt Disney World and New York City. While the state prepares to spend up to $1 billion to save the lake, farmers and ranchers upstream are enriching their fields with thousands of tons of sludge each year from sewage plants in South Florida and across the nation.

PENNSYLVANIA -
http://www.post-gazette.com/healthscience/20000611sludge4.asp
TONY BEHUN - 11-YEAR OLD PENNSYLVANIA BOY DIES SHORTLY AFTER DRIVING DIRT BIKE  THROUGH SEWAGE SLUDGE - PA. DEP. APOLOGIZES FOR "BEE-STING" Staphylococcus aureus - a bacteria found in sewage - caused death

TENNESSEE -
http://www.tennessean.com/sii/00/04/08/showme08.shtml
SEWAGE SLUDGE FARM CONTAMINATES SPRING AND CREEK
TENNESSEE - SLUDGE FARM SHUT DOWN - STATE CITES AIR & WATER POLLUTION - CRIMINAL ENVIRONMENTAL INVESTIGATION PENDING - 4/8/00

http://www.txpeer.org/Bush/Home_On_The_Range.html
TEXAS SLUDGE VICTIMS - In 1992, after dumping began, the people of Sierra Blanca began to complain of the odor. "The chemical odors coming off the
application area are not just a nuisance and a trespass, they're a health hazard -
hydrogen sulfide and ammonia vapors mixed with a fecal smell, strange
rashes and blisters in the mouth, more flu, more colds, more allergies, and
asthma since they came.
Van Horn, TX 1996, a larger town 34 miles east of Sierra Blanca; rancher tried to sell his ranch to escape the smell, but none would buy it.

VIRGINIA-
VIRGINIA - LAND APPLICATION OF SLUDGE - THE UNCENSORED STORY
Henry J. Staudinger  http://www.ecoglobe.org.nz/news1999/o109news.htm

http://www.culpepernews.com/
Reporter David Swanson. dcswan@cstone.net VIRGINIA - CULPEPER - SLUDGE ARTICLES - CONTAMINATED  WELL WATER - APRIL 12, 2000. THIS CASE INVOLVES BIOGRO.
Series of articles on this issue: 
"LENN REJECTS BIOGRO OFFER" -
VIRGINIA - CULPEPER - FARMER REFUSES TO SIGN BIO GRO'S RELEASE/GAG ORDER RE SLUDGE CONTAMINATED WELL
Virginia Dept. of Health has "no interest" in determining what caused
the "damage" (contamination of well)

http://www.newsadvance.com/archives/MGBX6AYNCXC.html
VIRGINIA (APPOMATTOX ) - ORDINANCE LIMITS SLUDGE TO "INTENSIVE FARMING" ZONE REQUIRES NOTICE OF SLUDGE IN COUNTY LAND RECORDS OFFICE POSSIBLE WATER POLLUTION PROVIDES IMPETUS FOR ACTION.  The News & Advance Lynchburg, VA Feb 5, 2002 By Christina Boyer

WASHINGTON STATE -
About Sludge Victim, Linda Zander, Lynden, Washington - "THE SLUDGING
OF AMERICA - SEWAGE WASTE SPREAD ON FARMS ... IS CAUSING CHRONIC HEALTH PROBLEMS" Chronic Health Problems (May-June 1996))
http://www.purefood.org/Toxic/toxicpoison.cfm

WISCONSIN -
http://www.dallasobserver.com/issues/1998-07-02/feature.html
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Oct.18, 1997 -Ben Beard,
CDC parasitic disease expert and lead researcher - Cryptosporidiosis water supply epidemic that sickened 403,000 and killed 100:  "New studies suggest a HUMAN rather than bovine source."
http://www.jsonline.com/news/dec98/1204crypto.asp  'HUMAN WASTE MAY BE
CRYTO CULPRIT - STUDIES SUGGEST SOURCE OF OUTBREAK WASN'T CATTLE"

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ORGANIZATIONS
http://www.sludgevictims.net  
NATIONAL SLUDGE ALLIANCE - PRESS RELEASE - OCTOBER 15, 2001 - RADIOACTIVE /SUPERFUND WASTES BEING DISCHARGED INTO SEWAGE TREATMENT PLANTS ....
The NSA Press Release is linked on the web at http://www.riles.org/NSA.htm

http://www.envirolink.org/issues/sludge/ .
http://www.penweb.org
http://www.safewatergroup.org/advocacy/environment_com_ont_excerpt.htm
http://www.safewatergroup.org/getting_started/SWG_myths_fact.htm
http://www.gsenet.org/library/20rcy/odor-gas.txt
http://www.vpirg.org/campaigns/environmentalHealth/toxic_sludge.html
http://www.springday.com/jimbynum/
Farmer, JIM BYNUM, KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI -This page is devoted to supporting the public preservation and protection of our water, food supply and land from the effects of toxic chemical and deadly disease contaminated waste dumping, formally known as beneficial sewage sludge use under EPA's Part 503 policy.

C U R E (Citizens United for Responsible Environmentalism, Inc.) is a national, non-profit, education and research organization based in California that works on sludge and composing issues. The <http://www.hookele.com/cure/sludge.html> Hawaii Chapter of CURE has a web page with many useful sludge links and information about their efforts to stop the toxic sludging of Maui.

VERMONT PUBLIC INTEREST RESEARCH GROUP - TOXIC SLUDGE
http://www.vpirg.org/priorities/toxic_sludge.html

PENNSYLVANIA - SLUDGE INFORMATION:
http://www.penweb.org/issues/sludge/


New Hampshire Greens'
http://home.earthlink.net/~rhenderson/grsludge.html position on sludge.

Environmental Interest Organization's. Sludge Dumping in Virginia
http://www.eieio.org/sludge/sludgehome.htm

http://pennsylvania.sierraclub.org/moshannon/sludge.htm
PENNSYLVANIA - SIERRA CLUB - LEN MARTIN -

The responsibility to prove that sludge is clean and safe falls upon the community that
generates it. The government should impose and enforce regulations that protect
public health and the environment. Any liability caused by contaminated sludge must be
borne by the community that produced it, rather than by the recipient farmer.
Jackie Hunt Christensen
Food Safety Project Director
Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP)
2105 First Avenue South
Minneapolis, MN 55404
Phone: 612-870-3424
Fax: 612-870-4846
Email: jchristensen@iatp.org

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Olympic Environmental Council (OEC)
Washington State - North Olympic Peninsula
http://www.oecprotects.org

The following two complete reports can be downloaded on the OEC web site.

1. Evaluation of Chemical Analyses of Influent, Biosolids, and Final Effluent Samples Collected by the City of Port Angeles Waste Water Treatment Plant in 1999 and 2000. John Strand. Columbia Biological Assessments, Richland WA October 20, 2000

*While the concentrations of chemicals found in biosolids do not exceed Biosolids Quality Standards for land application (WAC 173-308-160), Biosolids from the PAWWTP contain mercury and cadmium at concentrations that routinely exceed other State of Washington regulatory standards, e.g., MTCA Method A Soil Cleanup Levels. (WAC 173-340-740)
*There are also some fundamental problems associated with the design of monitoring and quality control procedures as implemented by the PAWWTP and their contract laboratories that significantly diminish the credibility of their environmental monitoring program. *Sampling of sludge may be inappropriate given it is the biosolids cake (dewatered sludge) that is removed for land application or landfill disposal.
*Detection limits employed by AmTest Laboratories in the analysis of sludge are too high to detect potentially harmful levels of organic compounds.
*The frequency and the number of biosolids and final effluent samples collected at the PAWWTP for chemical analyses are insufficient to satisfy good scientific practice.
*The PAWWTP or the contracted analytical laboratory (s) have not always followed proper chain of custody procedures and other quality control procedures, thereby diminishing the credibility of their analytical chemistry program.
* Final effluents from the PAWWTP appear not to contain concentrations of any contaminant that, after dilution by waters of the Strait of Juan de Fuca (assuming minimum dilution factor of 100), will exceed State of Washington Water Quality Standards (WAC 173-201A). This finding applies to the final effluent samples collected on 1/12-1/13/99 and again on 1/18-1/19/00.
*The PAWWTP’s NPDES Permit (WA-002397-3) is more than three years out of date.
... these results do not provide sufficient information to enable the Department of Ecology to conclude, on a scientifically defensible basis, that biosolids from the PAWWTP do not contain potentially harmful levels of chemicals, particularly organic compounds. Final effluents from the PAWWTP, however, appear not to contain concentrations of any contaminant that, after dilution by waters of the Strait of Juan de Fuca (assuming minimum dilution factor of 100), will exceed State of Washington Water Quality Standards (WAC 173-201A).


2. NOTE: Rayonier, Inc. trucks its Mt Pleasant Landfill leachate to the Port Angeles WA Waste Water Treatment Plant (PAWWTP). This report considers landfill contaminants that might be found in the PAWWTP.)

receiving a copy of Reference 1, and noting Washington Department of Health’s interest in acetone and other solvents in the Mt Pleasant Landfill, prompted me to take another look at the analyses of influent, biosolids and final effluents conducted at the Port Angeles Waste Water Treatment Plant (PAWWTP) in 1999 and 2000.

Reference 1....common practice to dump acetone on hog fuel at the Rayonier Pulp Mill.
.... this practice might explain the detection of acetone and other solvents in one of the sludge cell landfill borings collected during a Preliminary Assessment/Site Investigation
... Of concern to the Washington Department of Health (WDOH) is the possibility that these solvents are not restricted to the sludge cell and are mixed with ash in the Phase I cell. Organic solvents associated with the ash could mobilize dioxins and other potentially hazardous chemicals that otherwise might not appear in leachates.
... only a single sample of leachate from the Mt. Pleasant Landfill was ever analyzed, and not for dioxins

Specific Findings
....acetone and other organic chemicals occur routinely in influent liquids at the PAWWTP
...acetone and other solvents (e.g., methylene chloride, benzyl alcohol, and phenol) found in influent liquid could increase dissolution of dioxins and other potentially harmful chemicals contained in the leachates.

Whether or not the concentrations of acetone and other solvents in influent are high enough to increase the dissolution of any dioxins and other chemicals in leachates is not known. It is also not known how much acetone and other solvents are added to influent in the Mt Pleasant leachates. There are no recent analyses of leachates from the Mt. Pleasant Landfill for dioxins and other organic compounds (Reference 1). There also are no recent analyses of influent liquids from the PAWWTP for dioxins. In the last year, only biosolids from the PAWWTP were analyzed for dioxins, and then only from a single sample (Reference 3). This is totally inadequate and violates good scientific practice.

Recommendations
...additional characterization of Mt. Pleasant leachates be required and include analyses of volatile as well as semi-volatile organic residues, particularly dioxins. This will address the issue of whether or not dioxins and other potentially harmful chemicals are mobilized and leave the
Mt. Pleasant Landfill.
... PAWWTP should be required to routinely (quarterly) analyze influent liquids for the same compounds.
...PAWWTP should compare the relative concentrations of dioxins and other chemicals including solvents in Mt. Pleasant Landfill leachate, in PAWWTP effluent, and in PAWWTP influent after mixing with the Mt. Pleasant Landfill leachates.
...Clearly, if the concentrations of dioxins increase in influent after mixing with leachate, additional sampling will be required. Either way, the PAWWTP will need to find and control the source(s) of acetone and other organic chemicals that now enter their influent liquid.
...disagree with the recommendation in Reference 1 that an annual sampling of leachates over a five-year period is adequate to detect any mobilization of contaminants from fill material. In my opinion, there is a need to assess year-round risks to groundwater and other receptors, which suggests minimum quarterly sampling at least for the first year.
...it is my opinion that minimum triplicate grab samples be collected from the same waste stream on the same day at each quarterly sampling.

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