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Biosolids NewsClips - September 3, 2025
This month’s edition of MABA NewsClips continues to follow key developments in biosolids management, with a focus on PFAS-related concerns, legislative activity, technological innovation, and operational changes across the Mid-Atlantic region, the United States, and globally.
MABA Region
PFAS continues to be at the forefront of discussion around the region. Articles posted around the region about PFAS destruction technologies, state and federal regulations updates, land application bans and the potential 5-year moratoriums are all detailed below. There are also articles detailing the EPA draft risk assessment and some of the key topics that are not covered within. Politics continue to drive these agendas as well.
A few highlights from non-PFAS related articles published within the MABA region are below.
- Rehoboth Beach DE recently completed a new dewatering project installing belt filter presses as Phase 3 of their improvement plan wraps up
- Wheeling WV recently approved a $2M project to cleanout and upgrade the anaerobic digesters onsite (first cleanout in 15 years)
National News
Across the nation, each region deals with their own obstacles and challenges while continuing to grow, beneficially reuse biosolids and advance their biosolids programs. Here are a few examples:
- Warren MI approves bonding of $110M for a new sludge incineration facility. NTP expected by October 27 to begin construction
- In Florida, a high school student gained recognition by comparing biochar to MiracleGro on bermuda grass in a side by side test with grow lamps in her garage
- Chattanooga TN, A 15 year Superfund site restoration has earned awards for transforming the land that feeds into the Davis Mill watershed
- In Connecticut, In July, the Governor signed an order banning the sale of any biosolids based fertilizers containing PFAS
- Jacksonville FL - Pollution in the St Johns river is being attributed to biosolids leaching into the water as billion dollar cleanup efforts are projected
International News
In international news, we have multiple articles from around the UK about water quality issues and concerns. New modern landfills and wastewater treatment facilities are being built in Rwanda and benefit the communities they serve. New article on PFAS concerns in Osaka, Japan and a success story in Barcelona about city buses successfully running on renewable natural gas for 5 years.
MABA will continue to monitor these developments and provide timely updates to members.
If you have biosolids-related news to share or are interested in participating in MABA’s Communications Committee, please contact Mary Baker at 845-901-7905 or [email protected].
Biosolids News
(as of August 28, 2025)
MABA Region
Rehoboth hits checkpoint in wastewater treatment overhaul with new dewatering facility
Rehoboth, DE (22 Jul 2025) - The City of Rehoboth‘s long-term effort to modernize its wastewater treatment system has hit a key milestone with the completion of Phase 3 of the 10-year project, marked by the installation and operation of a new dewatering facility. The newly installed belt filter press, which began operating last month, significantly improves the efficiency of the treatment process. Unlike the previous system that produced a watery sludge composed of just 2% solid material, the new system yields a denser byproduct known as “cake,” which is about 20% solid.
Getting PFAS out of biosolids isn’t easy. Some companies are trying
Washington, DC (22 Jul 2025) - State regulations and litigation drive market for PFAS-destruction technologies targeting sewage sludge. Removing PFAS from biosolids is not straightforward. A few companies are optimizing technologies, such as gasification and pyrolysis, that can destroy PFAS in biosolids and create hydrogen gas and biochar as valuable by-products. It remains to be seen whether wastewater treatment plants will adopt such methods and how they will pay for the costs of a high-energy PFAS-destruction system.
Why Farmers May Be Able to Continue Fertilizing Fields With PFAS-Contaminated Sewage Sludge
Brooklyn, NY (28 Jul 2025) - Republicans are quietly moving to kill proposed regulations for PFAS-contaminated sewage sludge that is spread on farmland as fertilizer, a practice that has sickened farmers across the country, destroyed their livelihoods and contaminated food and water supplies. The Biden administration in its final days issued a draft health risk assessment level for some PFAS in sludge that would have dramatically limited the use of the substance, also called biosolids, as fertilizer, if finalized and implemented.
How private companies influenced federal and state decisions about potentially hazardous sewage sludge on farmland
Syracuse, NY (12 Aug 2025) - Environmental Advocates NY was part of the push to pass a state-level five-year moratorium on the land application of sewage sludge on farmland. The bill easily passed the New York state Senate but saw some issues in the Assembly after private companies including Casella lobbied against it, according to one of the bill’s sponsors. According to a source familiar with lobbying efforts on the statewide moratorium, Casella Organics coordinated with Rockland County officials, New York City Department of Environmental Protection, New York Water Environment Association and the New York State Association of Counties during the final week of the legislative session.
“How can this happen?” Fight over sewage sludge on farms intensifies
State legislature considers, nearly passes bill to ban sewage sludge used for agriculture, landscaping
EPA Attempts to Sugarcoat Toxic Sewage Sludge
Washington, DC (14 Aug 2025) - Despite finding adverse human health effects from even miniscule amounts of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in biosolid fertilizer applications, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) latest draft risk assessment ducks key issues and plays methodological games, according to comments filed by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) and the plaintiffs PEER represents in a lawsuit against EPA for failing to regulate PFAS in sewage sludge.
Thousands tell the EPA: no more PFAS on American farms
Federal Action on PFAS-Contaminated Sewage Sludge Is Long Overdue
Wheeling Council approves $2 million to clean and repair water treatment plant
Wheeling, WV (21 Aug 2025) - Wheeling City Council has just approved over $2 million dollars for cleaning and repairs to the city’s water treatment plant. Through bond financing and increases to water and sewer rates, the city plans to make massive upgrades over the next few years. Three ordinances passed Tuesday night will tackle issues related to the digesters at the plant. Digesters are tanks used to process sewer sludge.
The unlikely alliance pressing Trump to regulate Pfas on US farms: ‘This is a basic human right’
New York, NY (27 Aug 2025) - An unlikely alliance of farmers, bikers, truckers, a detective and scientists from across the political spectrum are working to pressure the Trump administration and Republican leadership to rein in the use of toxic sewage sludge as fertilizer on the nation’s farmland.
Sludge often teems with Pfas, or “forever chemicals”, which present a health risk to farmers and the public, and have destroyed farms and contaminated water across the country. The issue has touched the groups’ lives in different ways, highlighting its broad risks to health.
Nationally
Special judge considers request to dismiss biosolids lawsuit
Brownstown, IN (23 Jul 2025) - A special judge is weighing whether to dismiss a lawsuit challenging a Bartholomew County ordinance restricting out-of-county biosolids. Jackson Superior Court 1 Judge Amy Marie Travis, who is serving as special judge in the case, took the motion under advisement following a hearing on Monday in Jackson County. In the motion, the commissioners argue, among other things, that they did not exceed their regulatory authority when they approved the measure last year, according to court filings.
Warren city leaders approve issuing bonds for over $110 million sludge incinerator project
Warren, MI (23 Jul 2025) - Warren city leaders have approved issuing $100 million in bonds for the replacement of the city's aging sludge incinerator. The Warren City Council voted Tuesday to approve issuing the bond to replace the incinerator at Warren's Water Recovery Facility on Warkop Avenue. One of the few facilities of its kind in Michigan, it combusts sludge, which is the material left over after raw sewage is treated and the water is filtered out.
New plant in Pasco turns a waste product into a usable resource
Pasco County, FL (28 Jul 2025) - “So we're walking to the Pasco County Biosolids treatment facility. This facility was a public private partnership with Pasco County and Merrell Brothers,” said Ian Petrocco, the construction project manager. “We take the dewatered cake material coming from the wastewater treatment plant and turn it into a class A class AA fertilizer product,” he said. By cake, he means the sludge that is left over after your sewage is turned back into clear water at a treatment plant. And class A or AA fertilizer is highly treated and can be applied with minimal restrictions.
Science fair project may help the turf industry
Lawrence, KS (29 Jul 2025) - A science fair project by a Florida high school student has the potential to benefit golf course maintenance while improving environmental sustainability. The project by Sarah Colley — a sophomore at The Villages High School in Middleton, Fla. — aims to determine whether recycled sewage could be a viable substitute for fertilizer on golf courses, while reducing the need to dispose of the sewage in costly ways unfriendly to the environment. For her project, Colley compared a recycled sewage product called biochar to common MiracleGro fertilizer when applied to bermudagrass and bahiagrass grown under lights in her garage. Her initial results determined biochar to yield comparable results to the MiracleGro fertilizer.
Long-awaited improvement project to Hilo Wastewater Treatment Plant begins this month
Hilo, HI (1 Aug 2025) - The Hilo Wastewater Treatment Plant, which was built in the early 1990s, will soon undergo its first significant improvements. After years of deferred maintenance, Hawaiʻi County entered into an Administrative Order on Consent with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in March of 2024 to bring the facility and related infrastructure into compliance. The facility serves about 30,000 residents in Hilo, and treats an average of 3 million gallons of wastewater daily.
Copperhill Industries Earns Governor's Environmental Stewardship Award
Chattanooga, TN (4 Aug 2025) - The company announced a successful transformation of one of Tennessee’s most environmentally impacted Superfund sites into a model of stormwater and watershed restoration at the Davis Mill Watershed. The project reflects over 15 years of transformative environmental work, culminating in a self-sustaining site with compliant stormwater discharges, ecological recovery and innovative biosolid reclamation practices.
Connecticut says 'no' to compounds found in some fertilizers
Hartford, CT (7 Aug 2025) - Some fertilizers commonly used on golf are in the crosshairs of lawmakers around the country. More specifically, public officials are concerned about the long-term health effects of PFAS — or Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances — in fertilizers and other products. On July 1, Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont signed into law a measure that will ban the use of fertilizers containing PFAS, making the Constitution State the most recent in a short list of states prohibiting their use. A similar ban is in place in Maine and Massachusetts with partial bans in other states.
How Pasco sewage sludge gets recycled to fuel Benton County wheat farms
Pasco, WA (11 Aug 2025) - Once a year in September, hundreds of wet tons of sludge get moved out of a storage area at the Pasco wastewater treatment plant. Sewage byproduct, also called biosolids, is loaded into trucks and driven away to two wheat farms in Benton County. Farms pay by the nitrogen value per pound of biosolids. The wheat fields are fertilized with the biosolids to reach the right balance of nitrogen in the soil.
Oregon Funds PFAS Biosolids Study in Agriculture
Portland, OR (11 Aug 2025) - Oregon has enacted a new law directing Oregon State University to conduct a comprehensive study on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in biosolids applied to farmland. The measure, signed into law on July 17, 2025, allocates $410,000 in state funding and takes effect immediately. The study will focus on PFAS contamination in biosolids used as soil amendments on fields that do not produce crops for human consumption.
Mass. lawmakers visit Maine to learn about how to stem forever chemical contamination
Augusta, ME (12 Aug 2025) - A group of Massachusetts lawmakers, officials and advocates are visiting Maine on Tuesday to learn more about how to prevent further contamination from so-called forever chemicals. Maine is regarded as a national leader for its work to implement policies that stymie the spread of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, also known as PFAS, which is a known carcinogen linked to an array of health issues. In addition to responding to high levels of PFAS in agricultural land from the historic spreading of sewage sludge, Maine was the first state to pass a rule requiring manufacturers to report intentionally added PFAS in products.
Maine lawmakers give Massachusetts a lesson on farming, PFAS
Senator pushes PFAS ban, drawing inspiration from Maine visit
“They’re in everything:” Massachusetts lawmakers explore solutions to forever chemicals
From sea grasses to manatees, human waste impacting environment on Florida's East Coast
Jacksonville, FL (13 Aug 2025) - Billion-dollar cleanup costs, vanishing seagrasses and dying manatees are part of a rollcall of problems environmental advocates tie to the amount of human waste tainting waterways along Florida’s east coast. There are other causes as well for some problems, but fecal by-products ― sometimes seeping from septic tanks, or from sludge labeled biosolids and poured onto farm fields ― have gained growing attention as a pollution source along the 310-mile St. Johns River and the Indian River Lagoon.
Composting offers benefits beyond the backyard for Fort Wayne residents
Fort Wayne, IN (15 Aug 2025) - While composting provides soil amendments for landscaping and gardens, its benefits extend beyond local residents’ yards. Composting not only reduces waste that goes into the landfill, it can also bring down what residents pay for garbage collection and benefit the health of waterways, says Hannah Allen of Fort Wayne City Utilities. Landscape debris makes up about 13.4% of all residential garbage going into the landfill, according to the program manager of watershed and sustainability.
Wind farm setbacks and biosolids fertilizer to be discussed in Senate Committee hearing
Oklahoma City, OK (25 Aug 2025) - Just because the idea of wind and solar farm setbacks failed to become law in the recent Oklahoma legislative session doesn’t mean the issue has died for good. The same applies for another controversial item that didn’t become law—the application of Human Biosolids on farmland and other sites.
Ag groups ask for withdrawal of draft PFAS risk analysis
Bloomington, IL (25 Aug 2025) - Illinois agriculture groups are requesting the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) withdraw its sewage sludge risk assessment for “forever chemicals” as the findings will create “uncertainty and confusion.” In comments sent to EPA on Aug. 14, Illinois Farm Bureau, IL Corn and Illinois Soybean Association shared their support of EPA’s underlying goal of addressing widespread contamination of the environment caused by historic use of PFOA and PFOS.
Greensburg Wastewater Plant earns state award
Greensburg, IN (25 Aug 2025) - The Greensburg Wastewater Treatment Plant has received an award from the Indiana Water Environment Association (IWEA). They were given the Biosolids Award, for demonstrating leadership in developing and implementing cost-effective, environmentally sound, and publicly supported biosolids reuse and management practices.
Brevard to petition state for hearing before more sewage sludge spread near water supply
Brevard County, FL (28 Aug 2025) - Brevard County wants to stop farmers and ranchers from using too much sewage sludge as fertilizer, saying that the high phosphorous levels could trigger toxic algae blooms in our drinking water supply. Brevard County Commission voted unanimously Tuesday to petition Florida's top environmental agency for a hearing to consider stopping a Clewiston company from dumping more sewage sludge on pastures that flow to the St. Johns River, which supplies half of the county's tap water.
Internationally
Review aims to keep lid on cost of sewage plant overhaul
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada (21 Jul 2025) - The City of Winnipeg will explore whether it can find savings, and otherwise aim to keep its budget in check, while building the next phase of its most expensive infrastructure project. A request for proposals seeks a consultant to conduct a third-party “cost estimate peer review” of Phase 2 of the $3-billion upgrade to the north end sewage treatment plant. The biosolids facilities project is expected to add much-needed sewage treatment capacity at an estimated cost of $1.035 billion.
Musanze, Karongi to get new waste treatment facilities
Musanze, Rwanda (28 Jul 2025) - The government is constructing modern landfills and fecal sludge treatment plants in Musanze and Karongi Districts as part of a broader effort to promote safe waste disposal and environmental protection. The projects, implemented by the Water and Sanitation Corporation (WASAC), also include modern Fecal Sludge Treatment Plants (FSTPs) in Rubavu, Rusizi, and Musanze.
What happens after you flush the toilet? - We visit Severn Trent's sewage treatment works to find out
Telford, England (3 Aug 2025) - The sewage water plant treats a combination of domestic and trade waste. It includes four storm tanks that temporarily store excess rainwater, alongside primary settlement tanks that separate settleable solids from wastewater, Activated Sludge Process (ASP) lanes where wastewater is treated, further final settlement tanks and a sludge treatment facility where electricity is created.
Japan machinery maker develops sewage treatment gaming app with microbes as characters
Osaka, Japan (11 Aug 2025) - Japanese heavy electric machinery supplier Meidensha Corp. has developed a gaming app to make learning about sewage treatment enjoyable through characters personifying microbes, aiming to release it within fiscal 2025. Titled "Gesui Okoku" (sewage kingdom), the trial edition of the app was unveiled by the Tokyo-based company during the "Sewage Works Exhibition '25 Osaka," held in Osaka's Suminoe Ward through Aug. 1 under the sponsorship of the Japan Sewage Works Association.
$60–$80 million sludge plant overspend fuels council scrutiny
Wellington, New Zealand (11 Aug 2025) - The Wellington City Council has pledged to conduct a post-mortem following a $60 million to $80 million blowout in the cost of the city’s new sludge plant. However, some councillors argue the fiasco could have been avoided if the council had not rejected earlier calls for internal scrutiny. Councillor and mayoral candidate Diane Calvert said she had a commitment from council chief executive Matt Prosser to conduct a governance review after elected officials were, in a private meeting, told that the new waste water treatment plant budget had increased.
Council knew sludge plant had 50% chance of cost blowout – bill now set to top $500m
Dry spell plus piles of biosolid fertilizer leads to multiple Lambton fires
Petrolia, Ontario, Canada (12 Aug 2025) - One Lambton County fire chief says contractors have to take more care where their leaving biosolids fertilizer after a major field fire near Oil Springs. Saturday, around 7 pm Dawn-Euphemia firefighters were called to Dawn Valley Road between Aberfeldy and Edys Mills Line for a field fire. “I was still responding when my pumper arrived on scene, and he said the bale stack is completely on fire. There’s a combine on fire, and it’s not far from an old barn with combines,” said Chief Don Ewing. Oil Springs/South Enniskillen firefighters joined the fight for over four hours. About 25 people were in the field Saturday.
Barcelona bus ran five years on fuel made from human waste
Barcelona, Spain (18 Aug 2025) - Human waste could one day usher in a new golden era of environmentally friendly infrastructure. Companies and researchers around the world are working to turn morning sludge into a legit source of renewable energy, and one particular venture in Spain is now eyeing a full-scale development of the technology. Spanish researchers turned the V3 bus line in Barcelona into an experimental vehicle running on pure renewable natural gas.
PFAS chemicals detected in sewage sludge at 34 locations across Japan
Osaka, Japan (20 Aug 2025) - Potentially harmful PFAS chemicals have been detected in sewage sludge at 34 wastewater treatment plants across Japan, with globally regulated PFOS found in nearly all of the samples, a study by a Kyoto University team showed Wednesday. The study supports the view that the chemicals have spread nationwide. The Japanese government is promoting the use of sludge as fertilizer, but has not set guideline values for the amount of PFAS in sludge byproducts.
PFAS contamination detected in sewage sludge across Japan, U.S. military bases suspected
"It's getting worse" — Fears over sewage pollution in Island's biggest river
Isle of Wright, United Kingdom (22 Aug 2025) - Dead wildlife and reports of a swimmer falling ill have led to serious concerns over the "worsening" quality of water in the Isle of Wight's biggest river. There are fears the River Medina is turning into an "open sewer", prompting calls for regular testing. Southern Water (SW) and the Environment Agency (EA) told the County Press they could find no sign of pollution during recent inspections, although the EA admits the Medina is not routinely monitored for bacteria.
Vientiane Wastewater Treatment Plant Project Nears 90 Percent Completion
Vientiane, Laos (28 Aug 2025) - The Vientiane Wastewater Treatment Plant project has reached 89.57 percent overall completion, marking a significant milestone in the city’s efforts to address urban water pollution. Located in Khammngoy village, Xaysetha district, the facility is being constructed by a Hungarian contractor with a total investment of USD 61.24 million, financed through a government loan from Hungary. Construction began in January 2023 and is scheduled for completion and full operation by early 2026. |
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August 2025 - Sally Brown Research Library & Commentary
Provided for consideration to MABA members by
Sally Brown, PhD., University of Washington
Carbon Update
It is still summer break and in my book that is a good enough excuse to spend another library away from PFAS. This month is a literature roundup of new (and newer) articles on biosolids and soil carbon storage. All of these articles say good things about biosolids.
The first article Carbon sequestration value of biosolids applied to soil: A global meta-analysis presents a view from high up. The authors combed through the literature to find articles where biosolids had been applied and changes in soil carbon had been measured. As with all of these types of studies, they missed several papers – but still identified 41 studies to include. Most of these were shorter term studies (< 5 years) with relatively low loading rates and with non stabilized materials. The main factors impacting changes in soil C were how much biosolids you apply and the years since application. The more biosolids you add - the more carbon you get (up to a point). The more time since the last application - the higher portion of that carbon gets mineralized.
There is a big discussion of how biosolids stabilization impacts longevity of the C, but many of the stabilization options - lime addition, iron addition, thermal drying, etc. are not so common and so not so relevant here. The authors conclude that adding biosolids to soil increases soil carbon reserves.
Paper #2 Intracellular carbon storage of microorganisms and resulting C sequestration in biosolids-amended agricultural soil comes from the Chicago biosolids program. Way back in the day, Chicago biosolids were used to restore strip mined soils in IL. Very high rates were applied over 40 years ago. This group has consistently published research on these sites and were one of the first to show how carbon can be stored long term. Here they go back to these sites (550 Mg biosolids per ha applied between 1972-1984) and test not only the soils for carbon, but also the soil microbes. They tested the bugs for neutral lipid fatty acids (NLFA) and phospholipid fatty acids (PFLA). In addition to the biosolids amended fields, they sampled conventionally fertilized fields and a high organic matter control. Unlike the first study, they did not see a big decline in SOM over time - instead they see a steady state of elevated C (remember applications ended over thirty years prior to these measures).
They also found fat and happy bacteria - you heard that right:
Translating that data into a more easy to digest format:
For paper #3 Effects on soil carbon storage from municipal biosolids application to agricultural fields we see how this carbon storage stuff holds up in Canada. The study was done in Nova Scotia looking at short and long term plots amended with lime stabilized biosolids. There was also a second portion of the trial comparing composted, lime stabilized and anerobically digested biosolids. Pet peeve here - application rates were reported for the lime stabilized on a wet weight basis. I hate that. Also the other trial - biosolids were added to meet the N needs of the crop with vastly different application rates. In other words, this study is comparing apples and oranges and within the orange portion of the trial, navels and tangerines. If we just consider the general category of fruit however, and trust that the authors made sense of this mess the answer is that the biosolids store carbon in soils. The authors found that the carbon from the lime stabilized was most persistent, followed by the compost and finally the anaerobically digested material.
Paper #4 Composted biosolids amendments for enhanced soil organic carbon and water storage in perennial pastures in Colorado takes us to rangelands in CO. The authors here have an association with the Marin Carbon project that found very high rates of C storage with a single compost application to rangeland in CA. This site was set up on four irrigated pastures that had different grazing schedules. Biosolids compost was surface applied to a depth of 5 cm (2”). The rate was estimated as 230 Mg ha, almost sure that that would be a wet weight. Soils were sampled 4 months after compost with changes in water holding capacity, C and N included in the measures. Plant yield was also measured. The compost made the plants grow, held more water in the soil and even stored more carbon. The impact was most pronounced on the most degraded pastures.
The library ends with #5 Impacts of organic matter amendments on urban soil carbon and soil quality: A meta-analysis. This paper is the first from Zach Malone, a PhD student with Rebecca Ryals at UC Merced. The focus here is soil carbon storage in urban environments. Like paper #1 It is basically a literature review. Looking for patterns in urban environments can be tricky as the authors included multiple land uses; landscaping, gardening, recreation and even reclamation in their search. Zach included composts, biosolids and biochars. Basic results echo what was seen in the previous studies in this library, biosolids (and composts) are great for the soil and help that soil store carbon.
So, wherever you are considering using biosolids – not only will you get bigger plants, you’ll get better soil and happier bugs.
Sally Brown is a Research Associate Professor at the University of Washington, and she is also a columnist and editorial board member for BioCycle magazine.
Do you have information or research to share with MABA members? Looking for other research focus or ideas?
Contact Mary Baker at [email protected] or 845-901-7905. |
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