Read Compost Bags to Avoid Sewer Sludge

Maybe lots of other people know about this, but I just recently heard about it so others probably aren't aware either.

If you buy compost make sure to read the label and see if it lists the actual source (i.e. plant source, forestry products, etc...). If the source is NOT listed you may as well assume it is in fact sewer sludge, and though they almost always say it is "Organic" that term means NOTHING for compost, it is not regulated so any/every compost can be called that. In fact the plants you grow with it would NOT qualify as organic unless it is approved.

Sewer sludge means just what it says, anything that gets flushed down the sewer/toilet gets thrown into the mix including chemicals/oil etc..that get washed off floors, heavy metals, lots of pharma drugs, etc...

Ideally it will have an OMRI logo/certification (a non-profit organization that approves fertilizers/compost/pesticides used for organic gardening).

Quote:

Poop may be the least of the problems with biosolids; sludge’s dirty secret is that it can contain anything that goes down the drain—from Prozac flushed down toilets to motor oil hosed from factory floors. A 2009 EPA survey of sludge samples from across the US found nearly universal contamination by 10 flame retardants and 12 pharmaceuticals and exceptionally high levels of endocrine disruptors such as triclosan, an ingredient in antibacterial soap that scientists believe is killing amphibians. Large food processors such as H.J. Heinz won’t allow crops grown with sludge in any of their products. For more on sludge’s safety issues, check out the 2009 Mother Jones story, Sludge Happens. https://www.motherjones.com/food/201...kellogg-amend/

Quote:

Allowing sewage to “cure” for a period of time does not remove its toxins. Heavy metals, including lead and mercury, as well as such industrial compounds as flame retardants persist, even concentrate, during the cure (some biosolids are treated to remove a small number of heavy metals). U.S. Department of Agriculture says any food crops grown with sludge-based amendments is not organic; on the other hand the EPA does not regulate the labeling of compost so that manufacturers may call it anything, including organic. https://www.planetnatural.com/compost-sewage/

Let's block ads! (Why?)

Read Compost Bags to Avoid Sewer Sludge