“Sludge In Our Waters” is a new report that investigates how industrial chemicals in some municipal wastewater sewage sludge applied to farmland are contaminating surface waters in North Carolina. Drinking water sources downstream from these sludge fields are at risk. Case studies in Chatham, Orange and Mecklenberg counties document this problem.
Elaine Chiosso, Haw Riverkeeper and Sam Perkins, Catawba Riverkeeper are the co-authors. Accompanying the report is a new mapping tool that shows locations of permitted sludge fields in North Carolina; the map also has an overlay of river basins and other features. The report is intended to inform the public and policy makers about the potential pathways to human and environmental contamination from sludge applications,with recommendations for changing our current practices.
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