Sludge Watch ==> Sludge Spreading = Flirt with Immeasureable Risk to Human Health

[Maureen Reilly]

Sludgewatch Admin:

Below this story, I have provided the statement by the Canadian Infectious 
Disease Society calling for a moratorium on the land application of sewage 
sludge until there is  competent, comprehensive research  the health risks.

These medical health specialists are right to be calling for a moratorium on 
sludge spreading.
Until then rural residents are the lab rats for North America's sludge 
spreading practices.



.........................................

COMMON GROUND
Ontario
Sept 2007

Sludge spreading reflects “willingness to flirt with immeasurable risk to 
human health”: Dr. William Plaxton of Waterloo-Wellington LHIN


The Ontario experience with groundwater contamination – just in the last ten 
years – should have taught us something. That’s the key theme in the summary 
provided to SPIRG researchers last month by Dr. William Plaxton.

Dr. Plaxton is the latest medical expert to add his voice to the growing 
list of experts concerned about the practice of sludge spreading in rural 
Ontario. Dr. Plaxton is Director of Critical Care Medicine for Grand River 
Hospital in Waterloo Region, and is also the Ministry Lead for Waterloo- 
Wellington Local Health Integrated Network (LHIN) for Critical Care.

At the request of the Southgate Public Interest Research Group, Dr. Plaxton 
conducted his own due diligence into what he believes is an important public 
health issue. His research – running to several hundred pages – is now with 
the SPIRG Board.

“To summarize,” Dr. Plaxton says, “from a medical and public health 
perspective, I am quite surprised that any proposal involving the 
intentional shipping and spraying of human waste materials onto rural 
properties could gain traction. The Ontario experience with groundwater 
contamination of human and animal waste has been tragic, and has resulted in 
loss of property, loss of health, and loss of life which has affected many 
Ontarians.”

Plaxton specifically notes the experiences of Walkerton, and of Kashechewan 
in Northern Ontario, where contaminated drinking water also caused a 
widespread catastrophe. Plaxton’s research document details the past 
outcomes of class action lawsuits arising from breaches in water quality 
across Ontario.

“Hundreds of millions of Ontario-based tax revenues have been spent as a 
result of our inattention to groundwater quality over only the past ten 
years,” says Dr. Plaxton, who notes that these dollars have been paid out 
for class action settlements, emergency evacuations, and the medical care of 
affected Ontarians.

There are two main areas of contamination that concern Dr. Plaxton: toxins 
and bacteriologic contaminants, as well as pharmaceutical contamination. 
Since COMMON GROUND published its first sludge issue last summer, we have 
been approached by residents who feel that their health has been compromised 
by the practice of sludge spreading here in the township: persistent 
gastro-intestinal illnesses, asthma-like symptoms that have become a 
permanent condition, etc. And we have heard stories of e.coli-contaminated 
wells that have required radical disinfection – sometimes repeatedly. We 
know for certain that sludge spreading has put our drinking water at risk.

In his summary remarks, Dr. Plaxton says, “As responsible professionals, 
policy-makers, and trustees of the environment, we must learn from our past 
in order to avoid any recapitulation of past tragedies. The current proposal 
to use human waste for fertilization purposes is in my opinion a willingness 
to flirt with immeasurable risk to human health and wellness – and one which 
neglects our experiences with quite congruent situations from Walkerton and 
Kashechewan.”
A PIRG team is working with Dr. Plaxton to develop strategies for rural 
communities for the management and reporting of sludge- related illnesses.


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Open Letter on the Spreading of Sewage Sludge on Agricultural Lands
June 1, 2001

To Whom It May Concern:

On May 31, 2001 the Canadian Infectious Diseases Society (CIDS) was 
approached and asked to state its position on the spreading of sewage sludge 
on agricultural lands. At that time, the chairperson for the Public 
Relations Committee of the Society issued the following statement:

"Until further detailed studies regarding the spreading of sewage sludge are 
available, the Society would request that a moratorium be placed on such 
action in the Ottawa area. This would entail that the sludge be entombed at 
a sanitary landfill site. The position of the Society is that the health of 
Canadian citizens must be protected against potential infectious agents 
until there is clear cut evidence that such actions will not lead to any 
potential public health hazard."

The Society would like to emphasize that non-decontaminated sewage, waste 
sludge, and other bio-materials (solid or liquid) pose theoretical risks to 
human health.

This is especially true if this material is placed into contact with the 
population's immediate environment, foodstuffs such as vegetables and plants 
for human consumption, or in close proximity to the water supply.

Many human pathogens found in such bio-materials can withstand, and survive 
in, harsh environmental conditions and remain pathogenic to humans and 
domestic animals for long periods of time.

Recent outbreaks of bacterial diseases (i.e. E. coli O157/H7 in Ontario) and 
parasitic diseases (i.e. Cryptosporidium parvum in Saskatchewan) show how 
fragile the barriers are, which currently exist to protect humans from 
waste-producing disease.

Therefore, CIDS remains steadfast that the disposal of all bio-materials be 
done in a safe and efficient manner, and that studies be undertaken to 
ensure that current disposal/spreading techniques are safe for the human 
population.

The fact that certain practices "have always been done like this" does not 
mean that they are necessarily safe in the present-day context.

The Society regrets that the city of Ottawa was specifically mentioned in 
the recent position statement, since CIDS has no knowledge that the city of 
Ottawa's practices regarding bio-materials is any more or less dangerous 
than any other municipality in Canada.

The Society would like to see further assessments of the safety of 
bio-materials as they are used in Canada, in order to limit their use to 
what is known to be safe.

A moratorium on their use is certainly in order where insufficient data 
exists regarding safety to the Canadian population.

The Canadian Infectious Disease Society is a non-profit organization, 
composed of medical and scientific professionals involved in the fields of 
Infectious Diseases and Medical Microbiology. We provide educational, 
professional, and research support to individuals in these fields.

Further inquiries about this statement or the Society may be obtained from 
Mr. Richard McCoy, Executive Director, at the numbers listed on this 
letterhead, or from Dr. Mark Miller, the President of the Society, at his 
office in Montreal (514-340-8294).

Mark Miller, MD, FRCPC
President