Published Thursday, February 13, 2003
validity of sample
Herald Staff Writer
Treated waste solids spread on more than 800 acres in Jackson Township may be safer than the company that supplies it has claims.
Results of independent testing of two water sources near the property and a sample of sludge indicated it was Class A, which is similar to the fertilizer bought at home and garden stores. The tests were ordered by township supervisors.
"The sludge tested in far enough excess of DEP requirements to be considered Class A, even though it has been entitled Class B," said Jackson Township Supervisor Chairman Brian Patterson.
Treated Class B waste was spread as fertilizer on a farm owned by Roy Neer, Butler County. Neer contracted Allegheny County Sanitary Authority, or ALCOSAN, to spread the waste culled from the Allegheny County treatment plant on his property.
Nearby residents have been up in arms that they weren't notified before the dumping began in May and have environmental concerns about the waste which is being used as fertilizer.
Samples were taken in October from Fox Run, which runs adjacent of the property, and a pond on the other side of the acreage, Patterson said. Those water samples and the same kind of sludge that ALCOSAN said was spread on the property were tested by Moody and Associates, Inc., Meadville, a certified groundwater and environmental testing firm.
The sludge that Moody tested was not taken from Neer's property, Patterson said. He said Neer did not give them permission to go on the property, so the sample was taken from ALCOSAN itself. "There wouldn't be anything left to get a sample of," the supervisor said, adding that Neer may not have wanted to be part of a "witch hunt."
Twenty tests were performed on the samples, including testing for ammonia, mercury, salmonella, fecal coliform, trace metals, cyanide, and volatile organic compounds, said Patterson.
The cost of the testing -- about $6,000 -- was covered by a Department of Community and Economic Development grant the township received with the help of state Sen. Robert D. "Bob" Robbins, Salem Township, R-50th District. Because the grant is for $15,000, the township plans to test again in the spring.
But even though the tests indicates the sludge is better than expected, some neighbors aren't buying it.
"Its probably a little early. I'm sure the sludge contamination hasn't reached the site yet for one," said Robert Grant of 1536 Franklin Road in Jackson Township, whose property abuts Neer's.
"I asked the supervisors if they knew (the tester) was coming and they said 'yes.' There's no way I would feel comfortable about testing from ALCOSAN if they knew (the tester) was coming on the scene. You couldn't put anything past them as desperate as they are to spread this stuff around."
Grant also called the testing a "waste of money. The sludge tested was from ALCOSAN, not off the property."
David Bachman of 139 Henderson Road, Jackson Township, said he didn't care what the sludge is classified, it just plain smells.
"I don't know if its Class A and Class B. We put up with it all summer here and the smell has been terrible," he said. "We weren't able to have one cookout here, any of us living here because of the smell. It made you sick to your stomach. You had to hold your breath and go to your car because it burnt your lungs and made your eyes water."
He added, "I don't have all the answers. All I have is what they tell us. If its supposed to be that good, how come they (ALCOSAN) call it Class B?"
To combat any future odor problems, Carole Shanahan, Residuals Program manager for ALCOSAN, said they had made an arrangement with the DEP to only spread sludge in the area between October and April.
"We felt that the neighbors complained about the odors, and in order to try to mitigate that, we made an agreement with DEP that we would only spread in the colder months," she said.
She did not know if they would be spreading on the Jackson Township property anytime this year, but said they had a five-year permit from DEP to be spread biosolids. The last time the ALCOSAN sludge was spread in Jackson Township was November, Ms. Shanahan added.
As for the independent testing, Ms. Shanahan said it could only be for the best. "We don't mind them doing that. Its only verifying that they are taking care of the public health and that's a very good thing," she said.