Sludge Watch ==> Pennsylvania - DEP told sludge was 'lime'

[Maureen Reilly]

"Miorelli and Tamaqua Mayor Christian Morrison recently alleged that DEP 
apparently lied when it initially said that substance was lime, and that it 
did not perform the appropriate inspections."


http://www.standardspeaker.com:80/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=7318&Itemid=2

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DEP: Biosolids fertilizer poses no threat
Saturday, 26 April 2008
By MIA LIGHT
Staff Writer

The biosolid fertilizer being used in Packer Township poses no threat to 
drinking water in the Tamaqua area, the state Department of Environmental 
Protection said this week.
DEP put its assurance in writing that the biosolids – sewage sludge often 
used as a fertilizer – are safe, legal and not affecting Still Creek 
Reservoir.

The letter, written April 23 by DEP’s Northeast Region Director Michael D. 
Bedrin, was sent to Tamaqua officials as a follow-up to the department’s 
recent inspection of a farm adjacent to the reservoir.

Neighbors told borough officials and local environmental advocates several 
weeks ago that some 30 truckloads of biosolids were dumped on a farm field 
as a soil conditioner.
The farm is within 100 yards of the Tamaqua Area Water Authority’s Still 
Creek Reservoir water supply.

Tamaqua borough Councilwoman Cathy Miorelli contacted DEP with a request to 
investigate the matter.In response, DEP contacted the farm owner by 
telephone and was informed that the stockpiled substance was lime.

DEP later conducted an on-site investigation and determined that it was in 
fact class-A biosolids – an organic material made from treated sewage sludge 
that is used as soil fertilizer.

As a result of the finding, DEP representative Tim Craven contacted Miorelli 
on April 2 and told her the substance was indeed a biosolid fertilizer that 
was trucked in from Phillipsburg, N.J.
Craven apologized to Miorelli for the previous misidentification of the 
substance as lime, which DEP says occurred due to the product’s trade name 
of EcoLime.

The product acts like lime in the sense that it addresses the pH balance of 
the soil.


Miorelli and Tamaqua Mayor Christian Morrison recently alleged that DEP 
apparently lied when it initially said that substance was lime, and that it 
did not perform the appropriate inspections.
“In no way was the department nor Mr. Craven attempting to cover up or lie 
about this situation,” Bedrin wrote in his April 23 letter to Morrison.

Bedrin reported that Craven conducted a follow-up inspection of farm 
property April 2 and that no violations or problems were found.
The farm and the trucking company that delivered the biosolids are properly 
permitted, according to DEP.

Due to borough official’s concern for watershed land and Still Creek 
Reservoir, DEP conducted a second inspection of the property April 10, with 
Craven, DEP Water Supply Management Supervisor Jerry Pillus and 
representatives of the borough and its water authority in attendance.
Bedrin reported that no violations and no evidence of contaminated runoff 
into a nearby feeder stream to the reservoir were found during the second 
inspection.
“More importantly,” Bedrin wrote, “the (biosolid) material was stockpiled 
more than 200 yards away from the stream. (And) the area between the 
(biosolid) material and the stream was vegetated and forested, which would 
prevent runoff from reaching the stream.
“Our staff went down to about 100 feet away from the stream and found no 
problems,” Bedrin wrote.
Craven did another follow-up inspection of the site April 21 and found that 
the farmer had spread about half of the material over his field and planned 
to spread the remaining material the next few days.
Once spread, the material would be tilled under and incorporated into the 
soil.
Bedrin said Craven paced off the distance from the stream to the stockpile 
and found that there is about 400 yards between the stream and the biosolid 
material.
“Again,” Bedrin wrote, “no evidence of runoff was found and (Craven) once 
again confirmed that the buffer area was more than sufficient to protect the 
stream and the reservoir.”
Some are still not convinced.

“They’re full of bunk,” said environmental advocate Joseph Murphy of 
Hometown. “We need to test the farmer’s soil and the water around it. We 
need to know what’s in it so that the (Tamaqua Area water Authority) 
filtration plant can be prepared.”

Water authority Chairman Brian Connelly said the authority would press DEP 
to pay for any testing necessary if the agency made an error in issuing the 
biosolids permit.
“We feel that we have been responsive to the borough’s concerns and will 
continue to monitor the site to ensure that the property owner remains in 
compliance,” Bedrin said.


mialight at standardspeaker.com