Sludge Watch ==> Better Farming - sludge can cost us plenty

[Maureen Reilly]

Sludgewatch Admin:

Dear Leslie James,

In your letter to the editor you state that the Ministry of Environment and 
the Ministry of Health test the sewage sludge and paper sludge to make sure 
they meet provincial criteria.
BAD NEWS:  Neither the Ministry of Environment nor the Ministry of Health 
tests sewage or paper sludge in any way.  The gov't relies on tests done by 
the sludge producer or the sludge spreader.

And if the sludge tests too high - bear in mind the sludge has already been 
spread in all likelihood - then they are allowed to average the last two 
sludge batch tests. Is it still too high?  Then average the last 4 sludge 
tests.    The results have little to do with what is actually applied to the 
farm field, but it allows high heavy metals sludge to be put on farm fields 
and yet be classified as 'in compliance with the regulations'.

I urge all of you to seek out the testing done for pathogens and pathogen 
indicators in the sludge spread near you.  I am finding sludges going out to 
farm fields with test results in the realm of 12 million Ecoli per gram.  
(the limit is supposed to be 2 Million).

Recently a Sludge Watch reader wrote that their local sewage treatment plant 
must have cleanish sludge since there is no heavy industry in their town.  
This doesn't necessarily make for 'clean sludge' since wastes are tankered 
into sewage plants. Small plants can be overwhelmed by tankered liquid 
wastes, like landfill leachate, that can make small plant sludge very toxic. 
  The little town of Picton Ontario found this out in recent tests.



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Published in Better Farming, Ontario
Dear Editors of Better Farming,


I'm disturbed that you are condoning the use of paper and sewage sludge as a 
harmless soil amendment.  You highlighted the history of one sewage spill 
but did not mention my deeper concerns –that this is a practice that dumps 
heavy metals and PCB’s in rural areas and  possibly helps to spread such 
deadly infections as E.Coli, antibiotic-resistant staphloccocus  infections 
(MRSA) and the prions associated with CJD –  all for cheap fertilizer.

In May 2006, I saw Terratec Environmental spreading sludge on a neighbours' 
field.  I remembered that there was some controversy about this practice, so 
I’ve been studying the issue ever since.
What I found is not pretty.   Sure the Ministries of Environment and Health 
test the sludge to 'ensure' that toxic chemicals fall within acceptable 
guidelines, but here's what Brian Schuette reported in Warkworth's Sterling 
Press on March 24/06 concerning some effects of sludge on the local area:
  Severe and prolonged illnesses in homes near where the sludge is being 
applied, including stomach and intestinal problems, chronic breathing 
problems , coughs, sore throats, fatigue and unexplained weight loss.
  Property values go down and the stench can force people from their homes.
  Improper application too close to wells
  Accidental spills of sludge on roads
  No earth worms in the fields where sludge has been applied

I have other concerns.  What effect do these toxic chemicals have on fish 
and wildlife even in the amounts deemed acceptable by the various 
ministries?   Do those contaminants stay in soil, evaporate into the air or 
find their way down the nearby Ganaraska River into Lake Ontario? Why do 
some large companies refuse to grow vegetables on fields that have been 
previously treated with sludge?  Why have staff at Johns Hopkins School of 
Public Health called on The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to update 
the science behind its chemical and pathogen standards in using treated 
sewage sludge on soil?

Judging by the book I just read - 'Toxic Deception, How the Chemical 
Industry Manipulates Science, Bends the Law and Endangers Your Health' – I 
fear that this cheap fertilizer is going to cost us plenty.

Leslie James
Ontario