National Sludge Alliance
Charlotte Hartman, National Coordinator
180 Boston Corners Road
Millerton, NY 12546
(518) 329-2120 (phone/fax)
email: chartmannsa@taconic.net
NSA Public Fact Sheet 111
Caution: EPA Scientist at Work
4/16/1997
- The EPA claims that a farmer can not be held liable for any damages to human health or the
environment caused by the use of biosolids/sewage sludge on food crop production land as a
fertilizer, even, if the farm becomes a Superfund site! Furthermore, according to the EPA,
neither the producer of the sewage sludge or the spreader of the sewage sludge will have any
liability for any health or environmental damages, when sewage sludge is used as a fertilizer!
(Public Facts #100, #101)
- However, while there may be no liability, other than the loss of a farm, the farmer is not
protected, because he/she is required to read the EPA regulation which warns; the EPA
Administrator has information available which proves that if any of the organic or inorganic
or pathogen pollutants in beneficial use biosolids/sludge enters your body either directly by
ingestion or inhalation or indirectly through the food chain, can or will, cause your death, or
cancer, or disease, or other serious health effects in you and/or your unborn children (40 CFR
503.9(t), FR. 58, 32, p. 9389).
- In effect, according to the EPA, the sewage sludge use and disposal regulation 40 CFR 503,
puts the health of the farmer, the food consuming public and the farmer's neighbor at risk as
well as the environment. Essentially, according to the EPA, there is no liability or risk to the
sludge producer or spreader of the sewage sludge. But what about the neighbor? (Public Facts
#100, #101)
- Death does not frighten Linda Zander, but she does get angry at the Federal and State
Agencies who are causing her sickness by allowing the uncontrolled dumping of sewage
sludge near her farm. The toxic pollutants from the sewage sludge have contaminated the air
and water on her farm. Zander has had to watch her family and friends become sick, and some
have already died, as well as her livestock. She has had to watch as her livelihood was
destroyed and the farm was taken away. The worst part was finding her name on an
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) list, as a part of a 1.2 million dollar EPA/Water
Environment Federation (WEF) public relations campaign to debunk sewage sludge "horror"
stories. (Public Facts #101
- The EPA can not afford to investigate any health damage claims caused by the use of sewage
sludge because of the liability involved. Which is why it has created the public relations
program to debunk any such claims as noted above, such as the Zander case and others.
(Public Facts #101)
- In fact, Number 2 on the EPA's list of 19 "horror stories" to debunk is, "Linda Zander case -
Sick & dead cattle -worker health -Farm Bureau and Dairy Today stories". Rather than
investigate the Zanders problems, the EPA/WEF has created a scientific fact sheet, marshaled
the state agencies, and scientists to discredit them. (Report to the National Sludge Roundtable
(RNSR), July 1996, Laredo Safety Institute, Laredo, TX.)
- In reality, before the toxic waste dumping started, the Zanders, who had operated the dairy
farm for 20 years, had a comfortable life with no major problems they could anticipate. They
looked forward to a comfortable and relatively healthy old age. Within a year after the
Western Services Waste Management began spreading sludge adjacent to their farm, Linda
and Raymond Zander reported changes occurring in normally healthy dairy cows. Some of
their herd developed arthritis and a number of their calves were born with tendon
abnormalities. Milk production dropped by 17 percent. Then the cattle started dying. (RNSR)
- Furthermore, the Zanders health problems fit the EPA's profile of toxic sewage sludge
exposure. While Linda experienced mycoplasma pneumonia, chemical induced brain damage,
thyroid problems and immune system damage, Raymond suffers from hypothyroid, lupus and
nickel toxicity. In addition to their other medical problems, the Zanders are facing financial
problems. They were forced to declare bankruptcy, when the bank, who is financing the
sludge producers' defense of their legal suit, foreclosed on their property. (RNSR)
- When Zander started looking for answers, she found that the Whatcom County Health
Department, the very agency that should have helped her, had approved the sludge dumping.
When she could not get the Whatcom County Health Department or the Washington State
Ecology Department or the EPA to stop the dumping, she went to Court for an order to stop
the dumping. The Court Order to stop it was not effective, because it was then dumped at
night. (RNSR)
- There is additional documentation which confirms the EPA, WEF, Washington State Ecology
Department and King County Department of Metropolitan Services (Metro) are conspiring to
destroy the credibility of the Zander family claim.
- Peter Machno of the King County Metro is the WEF expert delegated (according to the EPA
memo dated 12-94) to explain away this case. On February 22, 1993, two Washington State
Ecology Representatives - Al Hanson, Kyle Dorsey and five King County Metro
representatives - Mark Lucas, Carol Ready, Steve Gilbert, Dan Sturgill and Salley Tenney of
the Metro Legal Services as well as Mel Kemper of the City of Tacoma, Hal Thurston an
Attorney, and four individuals actually associated with the Zander law suit, met in a closed
meeting to discuss the Zander Case. According to Keith A. Bode's, Zander Action Summary,
the legal cost will exceed 500,000 dollars. (RNSR)
- Bode also warned the producer organization in the Zander Action Summary that Zander had
identified 18 medical experts (including physicians, immunologists, toxicologists, and
nutritionists), 9 veterinarians, 2 property valuation/devaluation experts, 3
soil/hydraulic/geologic experts and 1 testing lab who would testify about the dangers of
sewage sludge use to humans and animals. Bode also warned that there would be
extra-regional impact and "This action must not be settled". Bode further warns that, "The
public persona of biosolids is precarious, at best, and each member of WEF and AMSA can
be assured that Zander appears dedicated to capitalizing on every available opportunity to
publicize her scare story ... and remember, with respect to land application, the farming
community comprises less than 2% of the population, so she need only reach a narrow
population to cripple land application. It is essential that her soapbox be removed and her
credibility challenged before our regional problem has any more effect nationally or
internationally on land application of biosolids." (RNSR)
- One of the articles written about Zander was "Sludge under suspicion," by Ed Haag, published
in the Farm Journal, in March, 1992. According to a letter dated, May 17, 1996, from PIMA
GRO SYSTEMS, INC. to the Planning Director of Imperial County, Ca., Pima Gro Systems
Director of Technical Services assures Imperial County that, "the Farm Journal article was
retracted by the magazine itself due to the amount of mis-information it included."
Furthermore, "The Farm Journal article...... was thoroughly rebutted by Dr. Terry Logan, a
respected soil scientist from the University of Ohio and a member of the peer review
committee that developed the 503 regulation. This rebuttal article is attached." (RNSR)
- The rebuttal article, dated April 27, 1992, is impressive. Dr. Logan has been, "active in sludge
research and consulting for 15 years." Not only that but he, "co- chaired the W-170 Regional
Research Committee of USDA-CSRS that has coordinated research on sewage sludge in the
U.S. for the same period of time." However, according to Logan, he sympathized " with the
Zanders who were taking advantage of an opportunity to reduce their input cost and to assist
in recycling of our waste. It was also logical for them to suspect that sludge was the cause of
the observed livestock disorders." "No data is given, for example, of the metal analysis of the
sludge applied to the Zander land, or analysis of soil or forage from sludge amended pastures."
- It is apparent, Dr. Logan never even read the article he was rebutting. No sludge has ever been
applied directly to the Zander land. Furthermore, in spite of Pima Gro Systems assuring the
Imperial County Planning Director that the Farm Journal article had been retracted because of
Dr. Logan's rebuttal article, as of July, 11, 1996, Karen Frieberg, Managing Editor of Farm
Journal, states that the Farm Journal has not retracted the article. (RNSR)
- The EPA/WEF public relations campaign to debunk the sewage sludge "horror stories" by
Zander, and others farmers like her, is based on the EPA's 18 year old policy of promoting the
use of sewage sludge as a fertilizer on lawns, gardens and food crop production land. EPA
backed up it's 18 year old sewage sludge policy with a sludge use and disposal regulation in
1993, 40 CFR 503. Under the EPA regulation, sewage sludge that is too contaminated with
certain toxic pollutants to be disposed of safely in a landfill is promoted as a safe fertilizer.
Yet, the EPA's strongest defense against these "horror stories" by Zander and other farmers
like her, is it's claim to a lack of scientific data concerning the human health and
environmental damages which can be caused by the toxic pollutants in sewage sludge. (Public
Facts #109)
- Furthermore, part of the EPA/WEF defense against the damages which can be cause by the
uncontrolled use of sewage sludge as a fertilizer, is an EPA funded 1996 National Research
Council (NRC) report; Use of Reclaimed Water and Sludge in Food Crop Production. The
NRC Report concluded, that based on the EPA's lack of scientific studies and data indicating
potential harmful effects, and if all the other regulations and laws concerning the safety of
food worked properly, sludge was probable safe for use on food crop production land.
- However, "The [NRC] Committee based its review on existing published literature [furnished
by EPA] and discussions with experts in the field.", such as Dr. Logan. (NRC Report, p. viii)
- In effect, according to the NRC Report, since there were no published scientific studies in the
literature to support the "horror stories" of Zander and other farmers like her, it concluded the
toxic contaminated sewage sludge could not be harmful as a fertilizer on lawns, gardens and
food crop production land.
- While the NRC Report did not note the EPA's acknowledgment that exposure to the toxic
pollutants in sewage sludge could cause dramatic and serious health effects through the food
chain, the Report did note that EPA only addressed 10 toxic heavy metals, out of 126 toxic
priority pollutants known to cause serious health effects. (Public Facts #110)
- Furthermore, the NRC report failed to note that one of the Studies it claimed to have
reviewed, documented Salmonella infection of cattle grazing on pastures fertilized with toxic
sewage sludge and a cycle of infection from humans to sludge to animals to humans. (Public
Facts #110)
- Not only that, but the disease organisms (found in beneficial use sewage sludge), which cause
many public health effects; Salmonella, E. coli, Hepatitis A, Cyclosporia and others,
according to the National Center for Disease Control, cause approximately 50 million cases of
food poisoning and 9,000 deaths annually. (Public Facts #110) -LSI-