Sludge Watch ==> Farmers, Homeowners Try Sewer Sludge To Repel Deer. Is It Safe?

[Maureen Reilly]

Farmers, Homeowners Try Sewer Sludge To Repel Deer. Is It Safe?

Sewer Sludge Long Used On Farms Is Toxic, But What About This New Product? 
Does It Even Work?

As investigative reporters John Stauber and Sheldon Rampton made clear in 
their 1995 book Toxic Sludge Is Good for You, industrial-scale farmers have 
long sprayed minimally processed sewer waste on fields, then told everyone 
how great the “biosolids” are. However, testing has shown toxic 
contamination in such materials, putting our nation’s soil and water, not to 
mention anyone who eats food, at risk.

Now, in a surprising new take, farmers and homeowners around the Washington, 
D.C. metro area have started to use a fertilizer derived from sewage sludge 
as a deer repellant, according to the Washington Post. People are picking up 
50-pound bags of processed pellets from the Water Pollution Control Facility 
in Leesburg, Virginia. The sewage product is marketed as Tuscarora 
Landscaper’s Choice (or TLC), and wasn’t intended as a repellent.

However, a number of people have sworn that it seems to be repelling the 
deer that have exploded in numbers across the region in recent years, and 
which regularly threaten plantings. It may be because of the fertilizer’s 
musty, human-derived smell, or possibly its high ammonia content.

The fertilizer is refined to a higher degree than industrial-grade farm 
sewage, earning a classification of Class A Exceptional Quality, as opposed 
to Class B biosolids. Therefore, it is said to be less toxic. However, how 
wise is it to be spreading human waste across our yards, gardens and farm 
fields? With increasing mobility, rising population, antibiotic resistance 
and other issues, do we really want to be broadcasting our waste around? 
Even low toxicity doesn’t necessarily mean no toxicity, so the threat of 
contamination remains.

Plus, the fertilizer will introduce more nutrient-rich organic material onto 
the landscape, much of which will runoff into waterways that are already 
overloaded with nutrients. The mighty Chesapeake Bay, for instance, has long 
been plagued by algal blooms that result from fertilizer runoff.

Ironically, a number of people have questioned the ability of the sludge 
fertilizer to even repel deer in the first place. Some experts are 
skeptical, while others point out that the observed effects may only be 
temporary. More traditional methods of repelling deer include using coyote 
urine or concoctions of red-hot pepper and sulfur, not to mention fencing.

Clearly, as human and deer populations continue to grow in many areas, we 
need to find solutions to peacefully live with our natural neighbors. But is 
sewage sludge the answer?

http://www.thedailygreen.com/2007/08/15/farmers-homeowners-try-sewer-sludge-to-repel-deer-is-it-safe/5222/