Activists Critical of Kentucky Farmers Using ‘Biosludge’ As Fertilizer

(Kentucky News Connection) Kentucky farmers are using biosolids or “biosludge” from city sewage as cheap  fertilizer but the price tag is high in terms of health, from toxic industrial chemicals known as PFAS and heavy metals contaminating produce, groundwater and  soil.

Kentucky lawmakers have passed regulations experts said weaken protections for biosludge application on farmland.

Tom FitzGerald, attorney and former director of the Kentucky Resources Council, warned farmers in the Commonwealth trying to save money on fertilizer by using biosludge could end up with a significant headache down the road.

“Unless the cities are properly managing the waste that come into the system, and are sampling and clearing them for release for public use, I would simply tell the farmers not to take these biosludges, because the risks are so high,” FitzGerald asserted.

According to open records request data from the Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet, lab samplesfrom around a dozen wastewater treatment plants statewide revealed most contained detectable levels of PFAS.