The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

pathogenic- viruses such as hepati- [ Thursday, February 19,2009 lNorthumberland Today.com ' , 9 tis and Norwalk which critics claim l - . ---- _-------------.----- have been found in the biosolids. l . . . F . . . Another of the 13 resident ques- l AGRICULTURE. Cramahe Township control learns new regulations on spreading of biosolids expected soon tiuns asked how sludge spreading I I _ can be declared to be safe if no test- ingof pathogens is conducted. Bonte-Gelok concluded there are data gaps in the current research. _ Based on its findings, the MOE has . set further research priorities. b The MOE has methods to detect ' , Hi hwa 115 to Brockville that Bonte-Gelok and Payne .Oth BY BOB OWEN about 150 of these products. The r 1iF,iatlt " = - I, sll,"r'eTdys/A'y', on land used the spake about the impact on soils of (ovrerthplornetsroo biosolids engineer pointed to the , . E we same year for soft vegetables and thglrjnetals found 1n sludge. d h h Expect new regulations governing commonly known fact that PPCPS rr iiC1 l - small fruits. M EE ll metals regulate 'l ttye the spreading of sewage sludge on are produced everywhere. .. " F, _ IN r ' Coombs was asked later in the 00 ye all found haul”: y_rdn farm fields later this year, an Medicines are notailabsorbed, and , ' ; . 'lt ‘ tiiPl1 , meeting where council Was going Antario sot s, Bonte-G_e_o 13:" . V Ontario's Ministry of Environment skin and hair products are fre- w . ' ‘ Wr . with the information. He replied hctmnsitakgnhby muntctpfahl les ' (MoED spokesperson says. quently flushed or enter the waste .v a rd T' . Pl .4. - ' i it I a the township is collecting inmrma, “if? uced_ Fl agnount tl eavy E Cramahe Township heard from stream when people bathe. I l , . ' . ' - 'a . LTia ' tion and council is educating itself. meet s uur) m s 'lf ge: h b a the Ontario governrnentTuesday. However, sewage plants are not 'lil - _ ,, - e , Il ‘ 3 Cramahe Township has budgeted ifld'l'2rd'5 198 hw1th out; 1'e l A team of three presenters, led by designed to handle these kinds of " ip"" ' F , m; M, . l "r ' ' $1.4 million for sludge removal in co (199,19 m 3100.215 191 s (IMF 2032 _ MOE manager of policy and special materials. . c, . / / , ' r; I - . 5 Phase 2 of its sewage treatment ca 1111311131093? eh 9E5 m . projects Eileen Smith, set out to A 2006 report by Susan Holtz, (i * / C . _ ' ' liilllllilltlesss?st expansion and is set to move for- will; 3251111 if w l "u,'h'ill) reassure the five council members senior policy analyst for the Cana. t,' , _ T ’ ' " . [pf iii-3371;, " ward immediately with last week's d . C eve sdwerebessb 3:120? that the government has been duly dianlnstitute-forEnvirorunental Law It .1 ' 1" , grtilNlltiiri'ititi E r announcement of federal and "f, 'ehglte Till, Y: 0:10 d of diligent, researching and providing and Policy, appeared to agree with 4:3 .- 'I _ , _ {flaw {wk-.71.”: 't provincial funding. 10 $113510 colonic]: 33112211283: appropriate guidelines for spread- some orthleBbi1te-Gelokfind.ings, . il , . _ , , l " $llgrllalN " , When asked how this, and coun- 'dol' plan? et allow s readin ing municipal sewage sludge, or The Holt: report was primarily ' ’ ' " " T" BOB O‘EINS " 'ii;;!, cil's green policy, would affect 3:311)? maid” {Pt ill rgise Ind biosolids,safelyonrarrnland. aimed at reducing environmental . . . . ' , u/l , la making a ruling on spreading " ”mod; s ll 1 f“; t 1 Smith explained how the ministry contamination, and only secondar- (r.rem.lett.) Envtronment management specialist Mkihael Payne of Dntano s Mlnlstry sludge, the mayor replied the $1.4 accepte F 94:19 f 0d flaw me a s has consulted broadly as it makes ily at immediate personal con- orAgrifelturli, Food and?yr.a)Afftrs answers questionsfrom i.hyroah.eT?ymihir? million was a high figure and most "1ear1T, f f”: artist-died oI - . changes to the system governing sumer protection, and listed 11 rec- c0u1ci!Tue.sdy along withlosolids. engineer Shelly PonteI-Qelok and policy and of the sludge removal had already b T edmrnjrs ill Sn r etrliells the spreading of the material. She ommendations. Among them were special proiects manager Eileen Smith, both ofOntarIo s Ministry of Environment. been done. {ggDmél'sate d l IP [Sigma retar- admitted that some are in favour of establishing better ways to deter- been studied. Government beneficial to the municipality and Cramahe resident Nick Ignatieff, d t h1i"ij1i//1/S', l was evident the practice and some oppose it, mine the chemical contents of researchers are attempting to look the agricultural community." a Green Party activist, was asked to . 3111113 11 e] ; are? e and small Smith anticipates the ministry sewage and increasing research at the big families ofchemicals. Cramahe Councillor Ed Van comment on the presentation. m e eve S to? atrg will present new regulations by the efforts for these issues, including In his presentation Tuesday, Egmond appeared to support the "l was impressed by the amount segage ”EHPIEEEYS 5315‘ whether end ofthis year. surveillance and monitoring, envi- Paynelaid out the health and safety ministry officials' statements, of research they have done on h onte e D I no say MoE biosolids engineer Shelly ronmental risks, ecological science, standards currently in effect for pointing out, "I don‘t know how“; potential hazards and how little sci- if amounts melsyre were con- Bonte-Geluk outlined some of the and human andwildlife health. sludge spreading. He told listeners much greener we can get." q entifiC examination 0f risk to SI ered safe, but did refer to 532-004 research done on the chemicals The Holt]. recommendations were that the allowable dosage of Referring to times when biosolids" human health. There was emphasis ponclusronjthat there were #1031151; and pathogens found in the treated broadly based and included 'iupport biosolids would provide enough were spread directly on snow and" won the microscopic quantities of ur1ns an PBDES 1n all sags of waste product used as fertilizer. or development of municipal nitrogen for corn for four years. He frozen soil, Van Egmond con1- hazards in parts per million, billion treatment systems. The setting u She acknowledged that giardia, bylaws banning pharmaceuticals said he believes it is safe if the mented, "They do a good job - or trillion, inferring that these were startli1dards was notwarrantgdh salmonella and listeria are com» and other chemical discards in application and timing are correctly much better than 30 years ago." tolerable but without any current G l e2004 (',',r,'//J,tgtg'tie,1 y onto manly found in sludge samples, but sewers, a review of biosolids and done, the material is placed prop- Until someone comes forward research on the actual levels of spe- e ok acknowledged m Dfmatlon yersinia and cryptosporidium are animal manure management prac- erly and cover crops are used. with incinerator funding, he said,, cific substances on risk." gaps existedin this “Pa too. found in less than 20% of samples tlces in light of issues related to Cramahe Mayor Marc Coombs he favours the current practice. _ . Fr, There was no real answer to the Bnnte-.Gelyk also discussed phar- tested by the MOE. pharmaceuticals and resistant bac, did not ask questions put forward Cramahe Deputy Mayor Jim mayor‘s direct question about the maccleuticals and personal-care Speaking briefly on the topic, teria in water, and public education, to him by residents. The ministry Williams seemed to favour the min- safety for human consumption of pro ucts (PPCPs) Michael Payne, an environment Bonte-Gelok said Tuesday that omcials came on the condition that istry view, adding a comment made leaf crops and vegetables grown on ----- management specialist with the federal Ministry of Agriculture, only council would be allowed to at a conference he attended in sludged land. The speakers%dmit- (y. Ontario's Ministry of Agriculture, Agri-Food Canada and the Cana, question or comment. Coombs said Barrie last December at which a ted no regulation exists to prevent Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA), dian Council of Ministers of the there were time constraints and speaker had claimed the MoE was growing these crops on sludged said some pathogenic materials Environment are doing research Smith said he believed a lot were nut aware of any employee at any land, but admitted it isn't done. were "addressed through treatment and surveys related to PPCPS- answered in the joint presentation. sewage plant who had taken sick Japan wun't accept various bean prior to application (on designated The MOE is looking at contami- Cuombs did ask if, given the time duetoworkingwith sewage. crops if they come from land farmland)." nants and information gaps in this research and facts available,there'd be van Egmond wanted more infor- sludged in the previous year. His response appears to have area, Cramahe councilwas told. amoratoriumonsludgespreading, mation about the practice of Professor Murray McBride, inter- answered part ofa question posed by Payne noted most PPCPS were at Smith replied the MOE has been spreading sludge on food crops nationally respected head of the area residents at a meeting with or near-zero levels when tests were allowing sludge spreading for 30 grown for human coor1sumptiom Cornell Institute for Waste Manage- Cramahe council two months ago done in the spring after they were years. When the rules have been Smith said there are waiting peri- merit, cautions that cattle pasturing about pathogens in sludge, but not deposited. followed, there have been no ods between the spreading of on sludgedland absorb toxins from asked at%esday's meetingduetolim- He admitted there are a lot of demonstrated problems, she said. sludge and crop harvesting. Payne sludge and can transmit them to . itations imposed bythe presenters. chemicals, and only a few have "I believe the program is safe, and said he knew of no operation from milk and meat products. . It did not answer concerns about l â€"â€"‘â€"‘â€"”â€"â€"