Sludge Watch ==> More on Synagro in Virginia

[Maureen Reilly]

Biosolids company to close Bedford sludge pond
By Conor Reilly and Sarah Watson
Lynchburg News & Advance
Thursday, March 1, 2007


A major biosolids company has agreed to voluntarily shut down a 
controversial Bedford County “pond” used to store treated sewage sludge 
after months of legislation targeting the industry.

The site, off Otterville Road, will close on or near April 1, Sen. Steve 
Newman, R-Lynchburg, said at a news conference Thursday.

Houston-based Synagro Inc., which operates the site, will also voluntarily 
pull its pending application for a similar site on a farm near Moneta, 
Newman said.

Both sites have drawn intense opposition from residents and county 
officials.

“I’m still in shock. I can’t believe it’s true,” said Nancy Raine, who lives 
less than a quarter-mile from the pit.

Ed Hey, who lives across the road from the site, said the move is “an answer 
to prayer” and Newman’s “hard work.”

“We are grateful that Synagro has listened to his (Newman’s) voice of 
reason,” Hey said.

Thursday’s announcement came after weeks of negotiations between Newman and 
Synagro officials that were sparked by legislation sponsored by Newman to 
give localities the power to ban ponds that store treated sewage sludge.

Newman said Synagro officials also will write a letter to Gov. Timothy M. 
Kaine asking him to sign the legislation, which has cleared the General 
Assembly.

State law currently prohibits localities from regulating the spreading or 
storage of sewage sludge.

Newman said he thought Bedford and Campbell counties would not want the 
storage sites, but he was told other more rural counties would.

Ordinarily, Synagro prefers to place these facilities in remote areas, said 
Tim Hayes, a Richmond-based lawyer for the company.

“I think with this one, it was more like Synagro realized this was causing a 
lot of antagonism,” Hayes said by phone.

The decision to end operations was made before news of a chronically ill 
toddler living near the site was made public, Hayes said. “That situation as 
far as I know didn’t come to our attention until they already made the 
decision.”

The Otterville site can still store enough sludge fertilizer for land 
application on the owner’s property, but it will no longer have the 
expansive trucking operation that has disturbed neighbors and damaged the 
road, Newman said.

Though Synagro voluntarily pulled out, Thursday’s announcement won’t prevent 
competing biosolids companies from installing sludge ponds elsewhere in 
Bedford County before Newman’s legislation takes effect July 1.

To combat that possibility, Newman said he is working with Kaine’s office to 
attach an “emergency clause” onto the bill. That would allow the law to be 
enforced immediately.

According to Newman’s measure, in order for a biosolids storage site to be 
approved, operators must have a conditional use permit, which requires a 
public hearing and approval from a local body.

“We agree that local governments should have land-use control over placement 
of new transfer-type storage facilities,” Hunter Richardson, Synagro’s 
public relations manager, wrote in a letter informing Newman of the 
decision. But “the need for storage will increase as state requirements for 
nutrient management plans and seasonal restrictions become more stringent.”

The storage issue was part of a “sludge package” this General Assembly 
session that drew support from Del. Kathy Byron, R-Campbell; Del. Lacey 
Putney, I-Bedford; Del. Ben Cline, R-Rockbridge; and Sen. Charles Hawkins, 
R-Chatham.

Lawmakers approved legislation to transfer biosolids regulatory authority 
from the state Department of Health to the Department of Environmental 
Quality. Supporters had called VDH officials “advocates” for sludge, rather 
than impartial regulators.

That move also raises permitting fees, which would give DEQ roughly $1.7 
million to hire new inspectors to randomly oversee sludge spreading in the 
commonwealth.

Newman’s legislative thrust came after Bedford County officials asked for 
help in December, when Synagro filed for a permit modification to allow a 
storage facility on a farm in Moneta.

“I know people in Otterville will feel a lot of relief” from this 
announcement, Raine said.

“It does feel like you only have four more weeks to serve before being 
released from prison.”

This story can be found at: 
http://www.newsadvance.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=LNA/MGArticle/LNA_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1149193464027&path=