Can they use sludge on produce?
| Wednesday, Aug 18 2010 06:07 PM
Last Updated Wednesday, Aug 18 2010 06:07 PM
Q: A lot of the veggies and fruit that you get from the supermarkets are advertised as "organic." Can they use the human sludge that comes from L.A. on the produce? Where does the sludge go that comes from L.A.?
I know that we were voted down, but is there any way we can get it on the ballot again? Doesn't it leach into our ground water?
-- Blogger KWentz on Bakersfield.com
A: Biosolids, which are a mix of treated human and industrial waste, can only be used as fertilizer on non-edible crops.
There are two permitted sites where biosolids, which some people call sewage sludge, can be spread. One is called Green Acres, which is owned by the city of Los Angeles and located near Taft Highway and Interstate 5. The other is called Honeybucket Farms, which is privately owned and located in northwest Kern County, just south of the Kern-Kings County line.
Measure E, the 2006 voter-approved initiative banning the land application of biosolids in unincorporated Kern County, is still alive but just not being enforced by Kern County while the courts sort out whether it should stand. Kern County has been winning key battles in its defense of Measure E, but the case is not over yet.
