A report from the Environmental Working Group (EWG), a nonprofit dedicated to studying pollutants in agriculture and drinking water and advocating for corporate accountability, last month found that as many as 20 million acres of U.S. croplands may be contaminated. The reason? Frequently, farmers use “biosolids”—the friendlier name for sewage sludge, a byproduct of wastewater treatment—to fertilize crops without knowing what that sludge may contain. EWG found that “forever chemicals” like perfluoroalkanes (PFAS), also called perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are prevalent in much of this sludge.
PFAS are found in all sorts of products, including nonstick cookware and, alarmingly, children’s clothing. It’s something regulators don’t often test for, which means the agriculture sector is unknowingly polluting its croplands to the detriment of both consumers and businesses. PFAS never break down and can build up in crops consumed by humans as well as those consumed by animals that are then eaten by humans. The substances have been linked to myriad health concerns from cancer, thyroid, and liver issues to birth defects. And, in the weeks since EWG’s analysis, PFAS keep showing up in wastewater treatment plants and cropland across the country.
The EPA has a PFAS roadmap and claims it’s committed to addressing this crisis, though the agency apparently lacks a plan to address PFAS found in sludge. The EPA is considering regulatory actions for PFAS, but has yet to adopt any. EWG cites two states—Maine and Michigan—that have stood out for addressing this issue, with Maine last week becoming the first state in the country to adopt a PFAS ban in biosolids. Though Michigan adopted PFAS limits for drinking water and groundwater, state Attorney General Dana Nessel and other AGs around the country have urged the EPA to offer additional federal support.
“EPA must leverage the full range of its statutory authorities to confront the human health and ecological risks of PFAS,” Nessel and a dozen other attorneys general wrote in an April letter. “EPA’s PFAS Roadmap represents a critical step forward in safeguarding communities from PFAS contamination. However, the success of each of the actions described in the PFAS Roadmap depends on full funding.” In 2019 alone, the EPA reported that 1.4 million dry metric tons of biosolids were applied to agricultural land, with an additional 1 million dry metric tons going to non-agricultural land. The Guardian estimates that 60% of sludge generated in the U.S. is used on fields annually. The threat of PFAS contamination doesn’t appear to be a problem that will soon go away.
