Dear Editor,
Thank you for the excellent reporting on the bio-solids application to agricultural fields and the runoff taking place near the Vly Reservoir potentially affecting the Bethlehem Town water supply.
The term “bio solids” is a fairly innocuous one. It could even be construed as harmless fertilizer made up of organic material that is applied to soil to enrichen it. However that is not the case. “Bio-solids” is a euphemism for “sewage sludge”. In the 1980s the EPA began allowing the usage of this sludge, a byproduct of sewage treatment plants on agricultural land in the United States.
It’s use is now widespread on much farmland and pasture land in the USA. But since the law was passed much science has shown its harmful effects.
“Bio-solids” contain everything that washes down your drain and the drainage of any business enterprise in your locality. And sewage treatment plants, which are mandatory in the USA, only filter out the liquids from the solids.
The solids can contain, heavy metals, pharmaceuticals, antibiotics, waste products from car washes, human excrement, detergent residues, toothpaste, etc. And these are allowed to be sold to farmers who place the sludge on their fields.
To be fair, many farmers refuse to use sludge.
If they do, it shows up in fresh milk and all the vegetables and grains you might eat. The use of sewage sludge is banned in the state of Maine because it was contaminating their dairy products.
Terrence Rooney,
Delmar
