Official: Sludge won't be problem

Within the next week, sewage sludge will be spread on farm fields within 300 feet of 54 Hamilton Township properties - a practice some homeowners feared could threaten their water supplies.

[J Stein]

Testing wells for baseline data is very smart, be sure to include chlorinated organics, heavy metals, lead, mercury, chromium and chlorinated fertilizers.

Unlike what the representative from Synagro would like you to believe, sludge is not just manure. NYC's South Bronx community in which Synagro operates a plant that processes sludge into "fertilizer pellets", has been fighting for years for transparency on what exactly is in sludge and what is being emitted by the pelletization process to the surrounding community.

Things ARE going wrong in the South Bronx, they have been for over 10 years and no one from Synagro has admitted it "was on them"...

[Helane Shields]

Congratulations to the Hamilton Township folks who got their wells tested before the sludge spreading, so they have baseline results. A week or two after the sludge is spread, they should retest for nitrates, metals and fecal coliform/e.coli.

The Synagro statement that cow manure has more metals in it than sewage sludge "biosolids" is absolutely false. Go to www.sludgefacts.org and see document 74, a chart comparing metals in sludge with metals in dairy manure. Except for zinc,(200 ppm in manure versus 1100 ppm in sludge) the amounts in the manure are so small they are barely measurable, unlike the sludge which has significant concentrations of toxic metals including lead, copper, cadmium, nickel, selenium, molybdenum, mercury and arsenic.(http://sludgefacts.or g/Ref74.jpg)

Sewage sludge has sickened (and killed) people and animals and contaminated surface and groundwater in Pennsylvania, and around the country. Be wary of sludge-slinger "promises". As indicated above, they cannot be depended on to tell the truth.
http://www.sludgevictims.com http://www.sludgevictims.net

Helane Shields, Alton, NH 03809 sludge researcher since 1996

[Jim Bynum]

Sludge is a money machine. EPA has made it simple to dispose of sludge on farmland without any liability whereas if sludge is put in a landfill there must be permits, and if a superfund site is created, everyone has liability. I think we can safely assume Synagro knows the truth about toxic sludge.

Toxic Sludge - Common Truths - Uncommon Lies
It is amazing how easily EPA put public health and the economy at risk with a simple federal authorization to release hazardous substances
http://thewatchers.us/common-truths.html

OUR SEWAGE / SLUDGE - BIOSOLIDS POISONED FOOD SUPPLY and the effects of bad science
http://thewatchers.us/Kaufman-Gerba-Lewis-Wal...

[Frank]

Why are the people taking a risk with their groundwater when this material is mostly non-nutrient based in terms of a growing plant? Sewage sludge is full of everything you can dump down a sink and has toxic materials that then get placed on some gullible farmers land for him/her to worry about later.

[are you kidding me]

OMG, SYNAGRO???!!!
They are being investigated BIG TIME in Detroit. The FBI has been all over the council, including Martha Reeves (as in MOTOWN) and it's already cost one long time anchor woman her job. It's corruption and then some. Bribes, etc. Someone ought to read the Detroit papers online. Detroit is a cesspool, literally and this "company" is right in the middle of it.

[Sandy Smith]

The "Environmental Science" writers explain that a "Heavy metal [is] any of
the high atomic-weight metals, such as lead, mercury, cadmium and zinc. All
may be serious pollutants in water or soil because they are toxic in
relatively low concentrations and they tend to bioaccumalate." In effect,
they are a "Hazard [which is] anything that can cause (1) injury, disease,
or death to humans,(2) damage to property, or (3) degradation of the
environment."

How safe is this product of EPA/DEP's imagination known as biosolids? What
treatment process removes all of the chemicals, including heavy metals, as
well as the pathogenic disease causing agents? Sludge won't cause a problem because soon there won't be any healthy people left to complain!

[Joe Newberger]

Mark Reider came into Shrewsbury and appeared before our Board of Supervisors to inform us that the CEO of Synagro refused to engage in correspondence with any municipality and Mark proceded to appologize for the errors made that caused a tremendous stench. He is a nice guy, but Mark is the company goat. They have all been to the seminars that have the slides and pretty pictures that says sludge is wonderful, and what would we ever do without it. The horrendous smell in our case ended up being the canary in the coal mine. Get on line and see what the scientific community and communities that have lived with this are saying. If this crap is spilled on a highway in transit, it would require a hazmat responser. Yet on our land it is wonderful. What if something goes wrong, absolutely... Does your community have a way of dealing with it? I bet not!

[East Brunswick CC]

Hamilton Township residents must TAKE ACTION NOW! Of course, Mark Reider, Synagro Rep is going to tell you it is safe -- he's getting paid A LOT OF MONEY to do that. Anyone educated on sewage sludge knows it contains heavy metals, pathogens, mortuary waste, industrial waste, hospital waste -- and the list goes on and on. DO NOT listen to Mark Reider, he has been given a lot of training to fool the public. He will lie so that he and his company, Synagro, can profit.
Hamilton folks MUST educate themselves and keep the sludge out. Residents in Berks, Schuylkill, Montgomery and York counties will tell you how SICK the sludge has made them. People have become antibiotic-immune from being sick for so long. They describe boils, rashes from sludge exposure. The sludge also attracts rodents and flies and completely diminishes your quality of life.
Danny Pennock, Tony Behun and Shayne Connor DIES after being exposed to sewage sludge. Synagro forced Shayne's mothe sign a gag order in return for a large financial settlement. They are trying to hide medical evidence.
A few other things to think about:
Sewage sludge cannot be spread near endangered species habitat.
Sewage Sludge was banned from being dumped in the ocean because it caused a dead zone and killed or mutated ocean life.
Hamilton residents and local officials MUST do something NOW! DO NOT let this happen.

[East Brunswick CC]

There are a lot of rural communities across Pennsylvania, standing up for their rights against the Synagro bullies. Hamilton Township should enact an Ordinance similar to ours and countless other communities to protecte the health, safety and welfare of residents.
The sludge corporations try to use protections made for small family farms to profit from unsuspecting farmers and communities. Keep in mind the Georgia farmer that just won his lawsuit against the sludge company for killing hundreds of cows and ruining his farmland. What they are doing is taking sewage sludge and DISPOSING on land. Anyone with a farming background knows that it has absolutely nothing to do with farming.
We must stand together and tell our state legislature and Attorney General WE DON'T WANT SLUDGE.

[Hamilton Township]

The problem with testing our wells is that it costs $425.00 to test for PCB's, Heavy Metals, Bacteria, and Nitrates. The township will not force Synagro or the farmer to pay for the testing, which I think is wrong. I find it quite amusing that Synagro is being paid to take the sludge, the farmer is saving money, but the resident has to pay to test their well. How rediculous. The residents are taking the risks and gaining no benifits. I also understand that the treament plants are saving money by paying Synagro. Have our sewer bills decreased one cent? No.



All it takes is one industry to containate a treatment plant. People are so concentrated on Human waste but do not consider that industries dump their waste in that same treament plant. Not all truck loads are tested before they leave the treament plants, which leaves a risk that a containmented shipment could be spread without anyone knowing it.

A simple request to test the wells and monitor them is not too much to ask or is it.

Residents need to voice their concerns at the next Supervisors meeting on August 4th at 7:00pm.

[Don]

I also understand that the treament plants are saving money by paying Synagro. Have our sewer bills decreased one cent? No.
Residents need to voice their concerns at the next Supervisors meeting on August 4th at 7:00pm.

You are right that the residents must go to the meeting but also they should call up their representatives and complain about DEP forcing this down our throats. The township has no say in the matter.

Also - this sludge is coming from the city, not rural treatment plants.

[Sewage Sue]

It is a shame that not more residents came to the meeting. After they experience the lovely effects of sludge they will have plenty of meetings. Funny how 2 homes with spring water now have fecal coliform bacteria and many of the wells in our areas nitrates have risen from 1.2 to 9.3 in the 2 year period after sludge.. The stench makes you sick, some throw up, others have sore throats, burning eyes, rashes, pnuemonia, stomach ulcers, bloody noses, migranes etc. now. All coincidence????? Mark Reider needs to explain to all of you what the SCIENTIFIC proceedure is that they do to remove the toxic chemicals, pathogens,Hospital waste, kemo drugs, mortuary waste, industrial waste, pharmecuticals, organic compounds etc..Let me know what they do to EXTRACT the harmful pollutants and pathogens, so far I haven't seen anything they do that removes that.Hamilton, you need to worry and do your homework. Go on Google.com and start research like we did, you will be shocked and appauled. Sinagro is not telling the whole story, they need to explain in scientific detail what they do to keep you safe. The PADEP needs to be held accountable for cramming this down innocent peoples throats. This is waste management at its worst.

[Jim Bynum]

CLASS A & B Sludge/biosolids Requirements
It is a little EPA joke on farmers and the public.
http://thewatchers.us/Class_A-B_requirements....

The EPIDEMICS? PANDEMICS? sweeping the country are not a joke or COINCIDENCE? Parallels sludge biosolids use!
http://thewatchers.us/1_index-pandemics.html

Compare that to the food poisoning cases -- from 2 million in 1986 to 81 million in 1997, CDC quit counting in 1999.
http://thewatchers.us/1_index-food-poisoning....

[PITBULL GUARD DOG]

HEY! HEY! HEY!..NOT IN MY BACKYARD!

What kind of chemicals and trace elements are being deposited in the ground "INTENTIONALLY" by dumping this SLUDGE?

Please,.... put it" WHERE THE SUN DON'T SHINE".

[Nancy Holt]

Mark Reider must be listening to lots of propaganda from Synagro. To even utter a statement that cow manure has more toxic metals than sewage sludge is an example of the lies told to convince farmers to accept full liability of becoming a waste disposal site for industrial, human, medical, mortuary, and road run-off concentrate that is the unknown called "sewage sludge."

What is not talked about is the method and mantras used today for sludge propaganda by the Synagros, the EPA, and USDA along with state and some local governments. The method was so very nicely stated by Adolph Hitler: "Make the lie big, make it simple, keep saying it, and eventually they will believe it." So far, not any believers making comments here.

[Sick in Shrewsbury]

My community has been experiencing first hand the sickening effects from sludge dumping. Bottom line - fight to keep it away from your families and communities! It is horrifying stuff - read about it online and educate yourself. Don't listen to Mark Reider - if he lived near the sludge pit and his precious family was becoming ill he would be singing a different tune!!!! Want to vacation with us? We have room near the slugde pit.