Sludge Watch ==> Ohio - Synagro sludge spreading stinks out neighbors

[Maureen Reilly]

To watch the great little video go to the website:
http://www.wtov9.com/news/13457535/detail.html


Sewer Sludge Stink Upsets Neighbors

June 6, 2007


JEFFERSON COUNTY, Ohio -- More than 50 Wells Township residents packed into 
a town hall meeting on Wednesday to air their concerns about a horrible odor 
in the area.

"The smell is horrendous,” said Bob Czuchran. “You go by, it burns your 
throat, it's unbearable."

Residents in attendance at the meeting were referring to the smell coming 
from fields along County Road 15 and Twp. Road 154 that are fertilized with 
treated sewer sludge.

The company treating the land, Synagro, said they treat farmland across the 
country so crops can grow.

While local residents realize the company is just doing its job, they say 
the whole thing stinks.

"It smelled like crap,” said Walt Allen, who lives near the fields. “That's 
what it smelled like, crap."

As NEWS9 crews checked out the fields, so did the Ohio Environmental 
Protection Agency.

Jacob Howdyshell, the EPA sewage sludge coordinator, told NEWS9 that the 
odor is not strong enough to take action.

"We have not found any violations as of yet," said Howdyshell.

Synagro representatives also sat in at the meeting.

"We came to the meeting to address their concerns,” said Bruce MacLeod, the 
director of technical services for Synagro. “We didn't realize when we 
booked this farmer that there was going to be this many concerns."

In the end, Trustee Joe Ellis told NEWS9 that Synagro promised the company 
wouldn’t be back to the area to lay sludge anytime soon.

And he said if they did need to come back, they would let the township know 
beforehand.

MacLeod told NEWS9 while work in Wells Township is finished, the company 
plans to move to another area in Jefferson County to treat the land.

They didn’t disclose what area they’d be moving to next.

Natalie Pasquarella, NEWS9