TRANSCRIPT PUBLIC HEARING OIM THE PROPOSED CLASSIFICATION CRITERIA FOR SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL FACILITIES MARCH 1, 1978 SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA ------- [ Library Region 4 1018386 JUN 2 \ 1994 DATE DUE (SH-34pl in -anient sfflto ------- TRANSCRIPT Public Hearing on Proposed Classification Criteria for Solid Waste Disposal Facilities March 1, 1978, San Diego, California This hearing was sponsored by EPA, Office of Solid Waste, and the proceedings (SW-34p) are reproduced entirely as transcribed by the official reporter, with handwritten corrections. U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY 1978 ------- PANEL MEMBERS: DR. JOHN SKINNER, CHAIRMAN DIRECTOR, SYSTEMS MANAGEMENT DIVISION OFFICE OF SOLID WASTE U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY WASHINGTON, D.C. MR. TRUETT DE GEARE CHIEF, LAND PROTECTION BRANCH SYSTEMS MANAGEMENT DIVISION OFFICE OF SOLID WASTE U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY WASHINGTON, D.C. MR. KENNETH SHUSTER PROGRAM MANAGER, LAND PROTECTION BRANCH SYSTEMS MANAGEMENT DIVISION OFFICE OF SOLID WASTE U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY WASHINGTON, D.C. MR. JAMES K. CHANNELL CHIEF, HAZARDOUS MATERIALS BRANCH AIR AND HAZARDOUS MATERIALS DIVISION U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY, REGION IX SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA MR. ANTHONY GARVIN OFFICE OF REGIONAL COUNSEL U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY, REGION IX SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA SPEAKERS: MICHAEL L. KIADO MICHAEL SELNA ROBERT E. VAN HEUIT HENRY HYDE BILL DAVIS CLARENCE KAUFMAN ARLO KEITH AMUNDSON CLAY KELLOGG PAUL MNOIAN ------- 1 SAN DIEGO. CALIFORNIA - WEDNESDAY, MARCH 1, 1978. 7:30 P.M. DR. SKINNER: GOOD EVENING. I WOULD LIKE TO WELCOME ALL OF YOU TO A PUBLIC HEARING THAT IS BEING CONDUCTED BY THE UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY ON A PROPOSED REGULATION ENTITLED "CRITERIA FOR CLASSIFICATION OF SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL FACILITIES." THIS REGULATION IS BEING PROPOSED UNDER THE AUTHORITY OF SECTION 4004 OF THE SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL ACT AS AMENDED BY THE RESOURCE CONSERVATION AND RECOVERY ACT OF 1976. THIS IS PUBLIC LAW 94-580. THE REGULATION IS ALSO BEING PROPOSED UNDER SECTION 405(D) OF THE FEDERAL WATER POLLUTION CONTROL ACT AS AMENDED BY THE CLEAN WATER ACT OF 1977. THAT IS PUBLIC LAW 95-217. THE PROPOSED REGULATION WAS PUBLISHED IN THE FEDERAL REGISTER ON FEBRUARY 6, 1978, AND THERE WILL BE A 90-DAY PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD ENDING ON MAY 8, 1978. COPIES OF THE PROPOSED REGULATION, AND COPIES OF THE RESOURCE CONVERSATION AND RECOVERY ACT ARE AVAILABLE AT THE TABLE TO THE SIDE THERE. THERE ARE ALSO COpIES AVAILABLE OF OTHER REGULATIONS AND OTHER REPORTS ISSUED BY EPA. THIS IS THE FIRST OF FOUR PUBLIC HEARINGS THAT WE WILL BE HAVING ON THIS REGULATION. ------- 2 WE WILL ALSO BE HAVING A NUMBER OF PUBLIC MEETINGS WHICH WILL BE MORE INFORMAL THAN THESE HEARINGS. ANNOUNCEMENT OF ALL OF THE PUBLIC HEARINGS AND ALL OF THE PUBLIC MEETINGS ON THIS PROPOSED REGULATION WAS PUBLISHED IN THE FEDERAL REGISTER ON FEBRUARY 27TH. THAT IS MONDAY OF THIS WEEK. THE ADDITIONAL HEARINGS WILL BE HELD IN WASHINGTON, D.C. ON APRIL 21ST; KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI ON APRIL 24TH; AND PORTLAND, OREGON ON APRIL 26TH. AN ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT IS BEING PREPARED ON THIS REGULATION, AND A DRAFT OF THAT STATEMENT SHOULD BE AVAILABLE FOR PUBLIC REVIEW TOWARDS THE END OF THIS MONTH. AND NOTIFICATION OF THE AVAILABILITY OF THE DRAFT OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT WILL ALSO BE PUBLISHED IN THE FEDERAL REGISTER AND WE WILL HAVE AT LEAST A 45-DAY PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD ON THE DRAFT OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION ON THE PUBLIC HEARINGS AND THE PUBLIC MEETINGS I AM GOING TO READ AN ADDRESS THAT YOU SHOULD CONTACT -- THIS ADDRESS IS ALSO AVAILABLE AT THE REGISTRATION DESK -- BUT FOR FURTHER INFORMATION ON THE PUBLIC HEARINGS AND THE PUBLIC MEETINGS YOU SHOULD CONTACT MRS. GERRI WYER, W-Y-E-R, ------- 3 THE PUBLIC PARTICIPATION OFFICER OF THE OFFICE OF SOLID WASTE, UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY, *+01 M STREET, S.W., WASHINGTON, D.C., THAT'S 20460. AND MAIL CODE ON THAT IS "WH562." A VOICE: WILL YOU REPEAT THAT, PLEASE? MR. SKINNER: YOU CAN FIND THE INFORMATION AT THE REGISTRATION DESK RATHER THAN REPEATING IT, IF YOU'RE INTERESTED. WE ARE MAINTAINING AN OFFICIAL RECORD OF ALL COMMENTS RECEIVED DURING THE PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD AND THIS RECORD IS REFERRED TO AS "DOCKET 4004," AND ALL COMMENTS SHOULD BE ADDRESSED TO THAT DOCKET AT THE SAME ADDRESS AND THAT ADDRESS IS ALSO AT THE REGISTRATION DESK . ALL MAJOR SUBSTANTIVE COMMENTS MADE WILL BE ADDRESSED IN THE FINAL PROMULGATION OF THIS REGULATION. THIS HEARING IS BEING RECORDED AND A VERBATIM TRANSCRIPT WILL BE PLACED IN THE DOCKET AND THE DOCKET IS AVAILABLE FOR PUBLIC REVIEW DURING NORMAL WORKING HOURS AT EPA HEADQUARTERS, WASHINGTON. THE PURPOSE OF THIS HEARING IS FOR THE PUBLIC TO PRESENT THEIR VIEWS ON THE PROPOSED REGULATION, AND WE WILL START THE HEARING WITH STATEMENTS FROM A NUMBER OF PARTIES WHO HAVE REQUESTED PERMISSION TO MAKE A FORMAL STATEMENT, AND I BELIEVE WE HAVE TEN SUCH FORMAL ------- 4 STATEMENTS TO 8E MADE, AND I WOULD ASK THAT THESE STATEMENTS BE SUMMARIZED IN A PERIOD OF APPROXIMATELY TEN MINUTES EACH. IF YOU HAVE A LONGER WRITTEN STATEMENT THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO MAKE YOU CAN SUBMIT THIS TO THE RECORDER AND IT WILL BE PUBLISHED IN THE TRANSCRIPT IN ITS ENTIRETY. BUT I WOULD APPRECIATE IT, FOR THE SAKE OF TIME, IF YOU COULD SUMMARIZE YOUR REMARKS IN A PERIOD OF APPROXIMATELY TEN MINUTES. FOLLOWING EACH STATEMENT THE PANEL MAY ASK QUESTIONS OF THE PEOPLE PRESENTING THE STATEMENTS. THIS IS NOT A FORMAL ADJUDICATORY HEARING AND THERE IS NO CROSS-EXAMINATION OF THF PARTIES MAKING STATEMENTS, SO ANY SUCH RESPONSE TO THE QUESTIONS ASKED BY THE PANEL IS VOLUNTARY. FOLLOWING THE PROPOSED STATEMENTS WE WILL ACCEPT QUESTIONS FROM THE REST OF THE PEOPLE ATTENDING. QUESTIONS MAY BE DIRECTED TO ANY MEMBER OF THE PANEL OR THEY MAY BE DIRECTED TO A PREVIOUS SPEAKER. ALL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE SUBMITTED IN WRITING ON CARDS THAT WILL BE PASSED OUT TO YOU IN A COUPLE OF SECONDS AND THEN PASSED TO THE PERSON WHO IS DISTRIBUTING THEM AND THEY WILL BRING THEM UP AND WE WILL ASK THE QUESTIONS THAT ARE WRITTEN DOWN. LET ME INTRODUCE THE PANEL. ------- 5 MY NAME IS JOHN SKINNER AND I AM THE DIRECTOR OF THE SYSTEMS MANAGEMENT DIVISION OF THE OFFICE OF SOLID WASTE, UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY IN WASHINGTON, D.C. ON MY IMMEDIATE RIGHT IS MR. KENNETH SHUSTER. HE IS THE PROGRAM MANAGER OF THE LAND PROTECTION BRANCH IN THE OFFICE OF SOLID WASTE IN WASHINGTON AND HE IS THE PRIMARY AUTHOR OF THE PROPOSED REGULATION. NEXT TO HIM IS MR. TRUETT DE GEARE WHO IS CHIEF OF THE LAND PROTECTION BRANCH, OFFICE OF SOLID WASTE, EPA IN WASHINGTON. NEXT TO HIM IS MR. ANTHONY GARVIN WHO IS FROM THE OFFICE OF REGIONAL COUNSEL IN THE EPA REGIONAL OFFICE, REGION NO. IX IN SAN FRANCISCO. NEXT TO HIM IS MR, JAMES CHANNELL WHO IS THE CHIEF OF THE HAZARDOUS MATERIALS BRANCH, EPA REGIONAL OFFICE NO. IX IN SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA. I WOULD LIKE TO TURN TO THE PREPARED REMARKS. WE WILL START WITH THOSE PEOPLE WHO PRE-REGISTERED AND REQUESTED PERMISSION TO MAKE A STATEMENT, AND THEN WE WILL MOVE ON TO THE PEOPLE WHO REGISTERED TONIGHT AND ASKED TO MAKE A STATEMENT. THE FIRST PERSON IS MR. MICHAEL KIADO. IF YOU COULD SPELL YOUR NAME AND GIVE YOUR AFFILIATION AND THEN MAKE YOUR STATEMENT. ------- 6 MR. KI ADO: MY NAME IS MICHAEL L. KIADO, K-I-A-D-O. I AM WITH THE CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND I AM REPRESENTING THEM TONIGHT. I AM A REGISTERED CIVIL ENGINEER WHOSE RESPONSIBILITY IS TO DEVELOP THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH PROPOSED POLICY AND/OR GUIDELINES PERTAINING TO THE USE OF SEWAGE SLUDGE. MY COMMENTS TONIGHT ARE ON THE TOPIC OF CADMIUM IN SEWAGE SLUDGE THAT MAY BE ADDED TO PRIVATELY-OWNED AGRICULTURAL LAND OR TO SOIL WHICH MAY BECOME A HOME VEGETABLE GARDEN. AS WE SEE IT, THE CRITICAL ISSUE REGARDING THE ADDITION OF SEWAGE SLUDGE TO PRIVATELY-OWNED AGRICULTURAL LAND IS THAT REPRESENTATIVES OF THE FEDERAL FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION APPEAR TO BE SERIOUSLY CONCERNED ABOUT POSSIBLE INCREASES IN THE AMOUNT OF CADMIUM IN THE DIET. FDA REPRESENTATIVES HAVE DISPLAYED THEIR CONCERN BY INDICATING THAT FDA MAY ESTABLISH MAXIMUM PERMISSIBLE CADMIUM CONCENTRATIONS IN FOODS. IF FDA TAKES ACTIONS ADVERSE TO THE SALE OF FOODS WHICH VIOLATE AN FDA STANDARD ON CADMIUM, A FARMER WHOSE SOIL IS RICH IN CADMIUM THAT IS AVAILABLE FOR UPTAKE BY PLANTS MIGHT HAVE TO RESTRICT HIS PLANTINGS TO: Cl) SPECIES WHICH TRANSFER RELATIVELY LITTLE CADMIUM TO THE EDIBLE ------- 7 PORTION; (2) PLANTS THAT DO NOT PRODUCE FOOD EATEN BY HUMANS; OR (3) PLANTS NOT EATEN BY AN ANIMAL THAT PRODUCES A PRODUCT EATEN BY HUMANS. TO OUR KNOWLEDGE, FDA HAS NOT INDICATED THAT IT WOULD EXEMPT HIGH CADMIUM PRODUCE FROM A STANDARD TO FACILITATE THE USE OF CADMIUM-RICH WASTE IN AGRICULTURE. EPA'S PROPOSED CRITERIA, PUBLISHED IN THE FEDERAL REGISTER ON FEBRUARY 6, 1978, WOULD ALLOW AGRICULTURAL SOILS TO BE MADE EXTRAORDINARILY RICH IN CADMIUM THROUGH THE ADDITION OF CADMIUM-RICH SEWAGE SLUDGE. IT APPEARS ESSENTIAL THAT STATE AND LOCAL AGENCIES WHO REGULATE THE USE AND DISPOSAL OF WASTES, AND WHO ADVISE FARMERS, KNOW WHETHER COMPLIANCE WITH THE NUMERICAL CRITERIA PROPOSED BY EPA IN THE FEBRUARY 6, 1978 FEDERAL REGISTER WILL GUARANTEE A FARMER THAT HIS CROPS WILL NOT VIOLATE AN FDA STANDARD. IT HAS BEEN OBSERVED THAT SOLID ORGANIC MATTER IN SOIL ADSORBS CADMIUM AND THEREBY HELPS RESTRICT THE TRANSFER OF CADMIUM TO THE SOIL SOLUTION WHERE IT MIGHT BE TAKEN UP BY PLANTS. THE ADDITION OF A SUBSTANTIAL AMOUNT OF SEWAGE SLUDGE TO A SOIL THAT HAS LITTLE ORGANIC MATTER TO START WITH (LIKE MANY OF THE SOILS IN THE ARID SOUTHWESTERN STATES) WILL CAUSE A SUBSTANTIAL PERCENTAGE INCREASE IN THE AMOUNT OF SOLID ORGANIC MATTER IN SUCH SOIL. A SUBSTANTIAL PERCENTAGE ------- 8 INCREASE IN THE AMOUNT OF SOLID ORGANIC MATTER IN THE SOIL MAY PROVIDE A SUBSTANTIAL PERCENTAGE INCREASE IN THE AMOUNT OF CADMIUM WHICH CAN BE HELD IN THE SOIL WITHOUT RELEASE TO THE SOIL SOLUTION. AFTER SLUDGE APPLICATIONS ARE PERMANENTLY CEASED MUCH OF THE SOLID ORGANIC MATTER THAT WAS ADDED TO THE SOIL BY SLUDGE APPLICATIONS WILL BE LOST DUE TO DECOMPOSITION. COMPLETION OF DECOMPOSITION COULD TAKE MORE THAN 15 YEARS IN UPLAND SOILS. AN UPLAND SOIL IN AN ARID SOUTHWESTERN STATE THAT HAD LITTLE ORGANIC MATTER BEFORE RECEIVING SLUDGE, MAY AGAIN HAVE LITTLE ORGANIC MATTER AT THE END OF THE PERIOD OF DECOMPOSITION. IT APPEARS REASONABLE TO QUESTION WHETHER THE AMOUNT OF CADMIUM TAKEN UP BY PLANTS FROM A SLUDGE- TREATED, CADMIUM-RICH SOIL THAT HAS LITTLE ORGANIC MATTER AT THE END OF THE PERIOD OF DECOMPOSITION MIGHT DIFFER SUBSTANTIALLY FROM THE AMOUNT OF CADMIUM TAKEN UP BY PLANTS IN THE FIRST FEW YEARS AFTER SLUDGE IS APPLIED -- THAT IS, WHEN THE SOIL IS A NEWLY-CREATED, CADMIUM-RICH SOIL CONTAINING A SUBSTANTIAL AMOUNT OF ORGANIC MATTER. WE ARE NOT AWARE OF ANY FINDINGS THAT ASSURE THAT THE ADSORPTION CAPACITY OR OTHER FUNCTION OF MATTER THAT WILL REMAIN IN SOILS OF ARID SOUTHWESTERN STATES AT THE ------- 9 END OF THE PERIOD OF DECOMPOSITION WILL BE GREAT ENOUGH TO PREVENT AN INCREASE IN THE AVAILABILITY OF CADMIUM FOR UPTAKE BY PLANTS. THUS WE QUESTION WHETHER "WORST CASE" SITUATIONS HAVE ACTUALLY BEEN REVEALED IN PAST EXPERIMENTS IN WHICH THE CROPS THAT WERE ANALYZED WERE GROWN SOON (I.E., WITHIN A FEW YEARS) AFTER SLUDGE WAS APPLIED TO SOIL . EPA COULD GREATLY AID STATE AND LOCAL AGENCIES WHO CONTEMPLATE THE USE OF THE PROPOSED CRITERIA BY PUBLISHING THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION: 1. CADMIUM CONCENTRATIONS IN NON-LEAFY CROPS AND LEAFY CROPS THAT WILL BE AVOIDED BY COMPLIANCE WITH THE PROPOSED CRITERIA DURING A MULTI-YEAR PERIOD PRECEDING THE PERMANENT CEASING OF APPLICATIONS OF SLUDGE; 2. CADMIUM CONCENTRATIONS IN NON-LEAFY CROPS AND LEAFY CROPS THAT WILL BE AVOIDED BY COMPLIANCE WITH THE PROPOSED CRITERIA -- AFTER APPLICATIONS OF SLUDGE HAVE BEEN PERMANENTLY CEASED AND ADDED SLUDGE- BORNE ORGANIC MATTER HAS BEEN DECOMPOSED TO THE EXTENT POSSIBLE IN THE ARID SOUTHWESTERN STATES; 3. STATEMENTS ON WHETHER THOSE CADMIUM CONCENTRATIONS IN NON-LEAFY CROPS AND LEAFY CROPS HAVE BEEN DEMONSTRATED TO BE AVOIDABLE BY COMPLIANCE WITH ------- 10 THE PROPOSED CRITERIA IN LONG-TERM EXPERIMENTS THAT REPRESENT THE FULL RANGE OF NON-LEAFY CROPS AND LEAFY CROPS FOR WHICH A CALIFORNIA FARMER MAY DESIRE HIS SOIL TO REMAIN USABLE, AND THAT REPRESENT THE RANGE OF CONDITIONS THAT WILL OCCUR IN THE ROOT ZONE OF A CALIFORNIA FARMER'S SOIL WHEN THE FARMER USES SLUDGE AND OTHERWISE MANAGES HIS SOIL IN A CONVENTIONAL MANNER; 4. A DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN ANNUAL AND CUMULATIVE AMOUNTS OF CADMIUM APPLIED, AND CADMIUM CONCENTRATIONS IN CROPS, THAT HAVE BEEN DEMONSTRATED TO SUPPORT THE PROPOSED CRITERIA; 5. A DESCRIPTION OF THE COMBINATIONS OF CROPS AND SOIL CONDITIONS INVOLVED IN EXPERIMENTS THAT DEMONSTRATED THOSE RELATIONSHIPS; AND 6. STATEMENTS ON WHETHER COMPLIANCE WITH THE PROPOSED CRITERIA WILL SUFFICE TO AVOID VIOLATION OF STANDARDS FDA MAY BE EXPECTED TO SET ON CADMIUM CONCENTRATIONS IN NON-LEAFY FOODS, AND IN LEAFY FOODS. IN THE ABSENCE OF ASSURANCES THAT COMPLIANCE WITH THE PROPOSED CRITERIA WILL AVOID THE OCCURRENCE OF SPECIFIED CADMIUM CONTENTS IN FOODS, IT WOULD APPEAR APPROPRIATE THAT A SEWjifrAGE AGENCY THAT WISHES ITS SLUDGE TO BE USED IN AGRICULTURE HAS THREE REASONABLE ALTERNATIVE COURSES OF ACTION. THE FIRST ALTERNATIVE IS TO UNDERTAKE APPROPRIATE FIELD EXPERIMENTS WHICH ------- REPRESENT CONDITIONS THAT WOULD OCCUR IN A FARMER'S SOIL AFTER SLUDGE IS ADDED, AND WHICH INDICATE CADMIUM CONCENTRATIONS IN THE GREATEST CADMIUM- ACCUMULATING CROPS EATEN BY HUMANS FOR WHICH THE FARMER DESIRES HIS SOIL TO REMAIN USABLE. THE SECOND ALTERNATIVE IS TRY TO FIND A FARMER WHO DOES NOT WISH HIS LAND TO REMAIN USABLE FOR PRODUCTION OF FOOD FOR WHICH AN FDA STANDARD IS APT TO BE SET CE.G., FOOD EATEN BY HUMANS). AND A THIRD ALTERNATIVE IS TO PURCHASE AGRICULTURAL LAND TO AVOID MOTIVATIONS TO PRODUCE FOOD FOR WHICH FDA STANDARDS ARE APT TO BE SET. IT APPEARS THAT EXPERIMENTS UNDERTAKEN OR CITED TO SUPPORT THE ADDITION OF SLUDGE TO LAND NOT OWNED BY A SEWgftAGE AGENCY SHOULD BE DESIGNED TO REPRESENT THE RANGE OF CONDITIONS THAT WOULD OCCUR IN THE ROOT ZONE: CD WHEN THE FARMER USES SLUDGE AND OTHERWISE MANAGES HIS SOIL IN A CONVENTIONAL MANNER; AND C2) AFTER THE FARMER STOPS APPLYING SLUDGE AND DOES NOT REPLENISH THE SOLID ORGANIC MATTER WHICH THE SLUDGE PROVIDED OVER AND ABOVE THAT PROVIDED BY CROP RESIDUES AND OTHER SOURCES. METHODS BY WHICH THE LATTER SITUATION CAN BE REPRESENTED, OR ASSUMED TO BE REPRESENTED, HAVE SHORTCOMINGS, EITHER WTTH RESPECT TO PRACTICALITY, OR LACK OP VERIFICATION. HOWEVER, THEY APPEAR BETTER THAN ------- 12 PROCEEDING WITHOUT RELEVANT DATA. THOSE METHODS INCLUDE ANALYZING CROPS GROWN IN SLUDGE-TREATED SOIL 15 TO 25 YEARS AFTER SLUDGE APPLICATIONS HAVE BEEN STOPPED. ANOTHER METHOD MIGHT BE TO SIMULATE FUTURE CHEMICAL CONDITIONS BY NOT ADDING SLUDGE BUT ADDING READILY DEGRADABLE ORGANIC COMPOUNDS OF CADMIUM AND OTHER CHEMICAL SUBSTANCES AS ARE IN SLUDGE. STATE AND LOCAL AGENCIES WOULD BE AIDED BY INFORMATION PERTAINING TO CONVERSION OF SLUDGE-TREATED AGRICULTURAL SOIL TO RESIDENTIAL LOTS WHERE HOME VEGETABLE GARDENS MIGHT BE ESTABLISHED. WE RECOMMEND THAT EPA PUBLISH ESTIMATES OF THE AMOUNT OF CADMIUM THAT WOULD BE IN THE DIET OF VEGETARIAN AND NON-VEGETARIAN HOME GARDENERS WHO PRODUCE AS MUCH OF THEIR OWN FOOD AS IS PRACTICAL IN SOIL WHICH WAS, UNTIL A TIME AT LEAST 15 YEARS BEFORE THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE HO,ME GARDEN, TREATED WITH SLUDGE BY A FARMER WHO ADDED AS MUCH CADMIUM AS ALLOWED BY THE PROPOSED EPA CRITERIA, WHEN THE CURRENT PH LEVEL OF THE SOIL IS: Cl) AS HIGH AS MIGHT OCCUR IN A CALCAREOUS SOIL AFTER TREATMENT WITH SLUDGE; (2) 6.5, THE LEVEL CITED IN THE PROPOSED EPA CRITERIA; AND (3) A LOWER PH WHICH MIGHT OCCUR IN A FORMERLY ACIDIC SOIL WHERE PH WAS RAISED TO 6.5 DURING THE PERIOD OF SLUDGE UTILIZATION. WE WISH TO NOTE THAT WE HAVE REVIEWED A PAPER BY ------- 13 EPA STAFF IN CINCINNATI ENTITLED "AN APPRAISAL OF THE RELATIVE HEALTH RISKS ASSOCIATED WITH LAND APPLICATION OF MUNICIPAL SLUDGE", AND FIND NO ADEQUATE SUPPORT THEREIN FOR THE NUMERICAL CRITERIA PROPOSED IN THE FEDERAL REGISTER. WE WILL SHORTLY SUBMIT TO EPA AND THE PUBLIC OUR APPRAISAL OF THAT PAPER WHICH IS CONTAINED IN OUR TECHNICAL BULLETIN ENTITLED "CONSIDERATION OF CHEMICAL SUBSTANCES IN SEWAGE SLUDGE ADDED TO SOIL THAT WILL PRODUCE AN EDIBLE CROP: A PUBLIC HEALTH PERSPECTIVE.11 WE HAVE SCHEDULED THREE FULL-DAY SEMINAR-PUBLIC FORUMS IN MARCH TO DISCUSS THE TOPICS COVERED BY OUR BULLETIN AND TO HEAR THE CONCERNS OF PEOPLE WHO HAVE REVIEWED IT, AND OF OTHER MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC. THESE MEETINGS WILL BE: IN SACRAMENTO ON WEDNESDAY, MARCH 22ND; IN BERKELEY ON TUESDAY, MARCH 23RD; AND IN LOS ANGELES ON FRIDAY, MARCH 2IfTH. THE PURPOSE OF THESE MEETINGS IS: CD TO INVOLVE THE PUBLIC AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE IN DECISIONS THAT WILL BE MADE BY THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH WHICH PERTAIN TO THE USE OF SEWAGE SLUDGE; AND (2) TO PROVIDE THE PUBLIC WITH TECHNICAL INFORMATION WHICH THEY DESIRE. WE HOPE TO OBTAIN PARTICIPATION BY EPA PERSONNEL IN THESE MEETINGS TO DISCUSS TECHNICAL ISSUES, SUCH AS THOSE I HAVE MENTIONED TODAY. ------- lh THANK YOU. DR. SKINNER: THANK YOU. ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS FROM THE PANEL? I WOULD LIKE TO ASK ONE QUESTION TO SEE IF I UNDERSTAND THE POINT THAT YOU WERE MAKING. IS YOUR POINT THAT IT IS NOT CLEAR THAT OVER TIME THAT THE CADMIUM UPTAKE OF CROPS WOULD DECREASE AND MAY INCREASE? MR. KIADO: I BELIEVE WE DON'T KNOW WHAT WILL HAPPEN OVER TIME AT THE END OF THE PERIOD OF DECOMPOSITION. I COULD NOT SAY THAT. I WOULD EXPECT THERE TO BE AN INCREASE. I WOULD SAY THAT WE JUST DON'T KNOW. DR. SKINNER: AND YOUR CONCERN, THEN, IS THAT IF THERE IS NOT A DECREASE, THAT THE PROPOSED CRITERIA WOULD NOT PROVIDE SUFFICIENT PROTECTION? MR. KI ADO: WELL, I WOULD LIKE TO BE TOLD WHAT THE CRITERIA DO GUARANTEE. DR. SKINNER: FINE. THANK YOU. MR. GARVIN: I HAVE ONE QUESTION. DR. SKINNER: YES. MR. GARVIN: DO YOU KNOW WHETHER THE FDA HAS ESTABLISHED MAXIMUM LEVELS OF CONCENTRATION FOR CADMIUM IN FOOD PRODUCTS AT THIS TIME OR WHEN IT IS ABOUT TO OCCUR OR -- ------- 15 MR. KI ADO: THEY CANNOT AND COULD NOT, SHOULD NOT BE BASED UPON THE AVAILABILITY DATA AT HAND FOR SUCH AN UNDERTAKING. I THINK THEY HAVE SEEN ENOUGH DATA TO SEE JUSTIFICATION FOR EXPANDING THE SAMPLING PROGRAM, AND AT THE END OF A LARGE SAMPLING PROGRAM THEY COULD DO THIS. MR. SIR, YOU SEEM TO BE SAYING THAT THE RESEARCH ISN'T YET COMPLETE AND THEREFORE I AM UNCLEAR AS TO WHAT YOU ARE RECOMMENDING. ARE YOU SAYING THAT WE SHOULD NOT BE SETTING ANY LIMITS AT THIS TIME? MR. KI ADO: NO. I AM SAYING THAT YOU HAVE PROPOSED MIRACLE CRITERIA AND YOU COULD HELP THESE -- THE STATE AND LOCAL AGENCIES -- BY TELLING US WHAT CADMIUM CONCENTRATIONS IN CROPS -- THOSE NUMERICAL CRITERIA WILL AVOID. THIS IS WHAT I PRESUME YOU KNOW AND WE DON'T. DR. SKINNER: THANK YOU. I THINK WE WILL DO THAT . THE NEXT PERSON IS DR. LUE-HING. DR. LUE-HING: DR. SKINNER, I DON'T HAVE A PREPARED STATEMENT. IF I DO LATER FEEL I WILL MAKE A STATEMENT I WILL LET YOU KNOW. I AM SORRY I DIDN'T BRING A PREPARED STATEMENT. DR. SKINNER: FINE, YOU CAN SUBMIT A STATEMENT ------- TO THE RECORD ANY TIME DURING THE PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD, OR IF YOU CHOOSE TO ATTEND ONE OF THE OTHER PUBLIC HEARINGS AND WISH TO MAKE A STATEMENT AT THAT TIME THAT WILL BE FINE AS WELL. DR. LUE-HING: THANK YOU. DR. SKINNER: MR. MICHAEL SELNA? MR. SELNA: MY NAME IS MICHAEL SELNA. I AM WITH THE LOS ANGELES COUNTY SANITATION DISTRICTS. THE SANITATION DISTRICTS RECOVER ABOUT 350 DRY TONJOF SLUDGE PER DAY AND WITH COMPLETION OF OUR FIRST TWO STAGES OF SECONDARY TREATMENT AT OUR MAIN TREATMENT PLANT WE WILL HAVE AN ADDITIONAL 200 TONS A DAY, GIVING US ON THE ORDER OF 550 TONS A DAY. PRESENTLY, MUCH OF OUR SLUDGE MATERIAL -- WHICH IS COMPOSED OF DIGESTED SLUDGE, BY THE WAY -- IS DISPOSED OF THROUGH A COMMERCIAL MARKETING ENTERPRISE, KELLOG6-SUPPLY COMPANY, CARSON, CALIFORNIA. THE MARKET FOR COMPOSTED SLUDGE IN LOS ANGELES AREA IS APPROXIMATELY THREE TO FOUR HUNDRED TONS PER DAY. IN ADDITION, THE DISTRICTS ARE PRESENTLY INVOLVED IN REGIONAL STUDY OF SLUDGE DISPOSAL WITH THE OTHER LARGE MUNICIPAL AGENCIES IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA, ORANGE COUNTY, AND LOS ANGELES CITY. THIS IS THE LA/OMA STUDY WHICH STUDIES SLUDGE MANAGEMENT ALTERNATIVES ------- INCLUDING APPLICATION OF SLUDGE TO AGRICULTURAL LANDS. AND BECAUSE THAT IS ONE OF THE OPTIONS BEING STUDIED IN OUR AREA I WOULD LIKE TO ADDRESS PORTIONS OF THE REGULATIONS THAT REFER TO AGRICULTURAL LAND DISPOSAL OF SLUDGE, IN PARTICULAR CADMIUM, THE MOST CONTROVERSIAL PART OF THE REGULATIONS, IN OUR OPINION. I'D LIKE TO ADDRESS THE FDA'S ASSESSMENT THAT HAS BEEN MADE OF THE HEALTH RISKS ASSOCIATED WITH CADMIUM SLUDGE. IT WAS ASSUMED BY FDA THAT A THRESHOLD OF APPROXIMATELY 70 MICROGRAMS PER DAY IN THE HUMAN DIET WOULD BE A SAFE VALUE THAT WOULD NOT CAUSE ACCUMULATION OF ENOUGH CADMIUM IN THE KIDNEY TO CAUSE RENAL FAILURE AT LATER AGES. THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION STATED ALSO THAT 70 WAS A SAFE VALUE, AND IN AN INITIAL MARKET BASKET SURVEY IN THE UNITED STATES IT WAS FOUND BY FDA THAT TEENAGE MALES IN THE UNITED STATES CONSUME ABOUT 72 MICROGRAMS PER DAY AND, THEREFORE, YOU SEE THAT THE INITIAL ASSESSMENT REVEALS THAT WE ARE ALREADY AT THE, PERHAPS, THE THRESHOLD OR IMPORTANT LEVEL IN TERMS OF CADMIUM. SUBSEQUENT ASSESSMENTS BY EPA, AS I UNDERSTAND IT, INDICATED THAT THE AVERAGE DAILY INTAKE WAS ON THE ORDER OF 35 MICROGRAMS PER DAY IN TEENAGE MALES. THIS ------- 18 USING AN AVERAGE OVER SEVERAL YEARS RATHER THAN A SINGLE YEAR'S DIET. IN ADJUSTING FOR DIETARY INTAKE A REALISTIC ESTIMATE FOR THE INTAKE OF CADMIUM BY HUMANS IN THE UNITED STATES IS 30 MICROGRAMS PER DAY. WELL, THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION'S RECOMMENDATION OF 70 HAS ALSO BEEN TEMPERED TO SOME EXTENT. THE AVERAGE DAILY INTAKE TO CAUSE ADVERSE KIDNEY EFFECTS IS NOW ESTIMATED TO BE 440 MICROGRAMS PER DAY BY DELSTRUM IN HIS WORK. USING THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION RECOMMENDATION THAT THE KIDNEY LEVEL BE RESTRICTED TO 50 MICROGRAMS PER GRAM KIDNEY WEIGHT, THE DAILY SAFE INTAKE MAXIMUM COULD BE ESTIMATED TO BE 110 MICROGRAMS PER DAY WHICH IS, IF YOU COMPARED IT TO 30, IS AS MUCH DIFFERENT THAN A COMPARISON BETWEEN 70 AND 72 -- THESE DATA ARE MERELY PRESENTED TO YOU TO SUPPORT THE STANCE THAT WE MIGHT NOT TODAY HAVE A CADMIUM CRISIS AS INITIALLY REGARDED BY THE FDA. AND I'D LIKE TO POINT OUT, AT THE SAME TIME, THAT THIS ANALYSIS BASICALLY FOLLOWS THE LINES BY A PERSON IN EPA, A MR. HERBERT OF THE HEALTH RESEARCH IN CINCINNATI, WHO POINTS OUT THE FACT THAT THERE IS A DISCREPANCY WITHIN THE EPA ABOUT THE HEALTH RISKS INVOLVED IN CADMIUM APPLICATION OR SLUDGE APPLICATION ------- 19 TO LAND. I'D LIKE TO TALK BRIEFLY ABOUT THE ANNUAL APPLICATION RATES THAT ARE SPECIFIED IN THE fiCRA REQUIREMENTS. THEY VARY FROM 50 KILOGRAMS PER HECTARE TO 20 KILOGRAMS PER HECTARE. THESE ARE THE CUMULATIVE CADMIUM APPLICATIONS. QUESTIONS EXIST AS TO WHETHER CADMIUM REMAINS TOTALLY AVAILABLE IN SOIL WITH TIME. REACTIONS SUCH AS PRECIPITATION AND IRON EXCHANGE CAN TEND TO TIE UP CADMIUM TO THE EXTENT THAT PERHAPS THE CURRENT YEAR'S APPLICATION IS A MORE IMPORTANT CONTROLLING FACTOR THAN THE TOTAL CADMIUM APPLICATION. I WOULD LIKE TO SUBMIT THAT A MORE RATIONAL REGULATION MIGHT INVOLVE A CADMIUM AVAILABILITY TEST AS A SUBSTITUTE FOR COMPLIANCE WITH CUMULATIVE APPLICATION; SOMETHING THAT MIGHT INVOLVE A DPTA EXTRACT ANALYSIS; SOMETHING THAT WOULD BE DESIGNED BY EPA AND PERHAPS WITH HELP FROM FDA THAT WOULD GIVE US A CHANCE TO ANALYZE SOIL IN VIABILITY WITH THE CADMIUM PLANTS. ANOTHER PART OF THE REGULATION RESTRICTS USE OF LAND TO BE USED TO GROW LEAFY VEGETABLES, TOBACCO, OR CROPS. IT'S NOT CLEAR WHY THERE SHOULD BE A CONCENTRATION RESTRICTION WHEN THE LOADING RATE FOR CADMIUM IS ALREADY RESTRICTED. AND, IN FACT, THE ANALYSIS BY PAHREN INDICATES THAT 60 MILLIGRAMS OF ------- 20 CADMIUM IN SLUDGE MIGHT BE SAFE WHEN THE SLUDGE IS APPLIED AT MAXIMUM AGRONOM RATE. THAT IS THE RATE THAT SUPPLIES SUFFICIENT NUTRIENT. THERE IS A RECOMMENDATION IN THE REQUIREMENTS -- AND THIS IS NOT PART OF THE REGULATION BUT IT APPEARS IN THE PREAMBLE -- THAT THE CADMIUM PER ZINC RATIO BE LIFTED TO LESS THAN 0.015. THIS DOES NOT APPEAR TO BE PRUDENT IN LIGHT OF THE STRICT CADMIUM CONTROL. LET ME GIVE YOU AN EXAMPLE. IF YOU HAVE A SLUDGE WITH LOW ZINC CONTENT THAT HAS ALSO LOW CADMIUM CONTENT, WHY SHOULD THAT SLUDGE BE DISQUALIFIED BECAUSE OF THE RATIO? AND I THINK THAT IT MERELY CONFUSES THE ISSUE TO HAVE IT APPEAR IN THE RECOMMENDATION. YOU ASKED FOR COMMENTS ON THE ABILITY OF SOURCE CONTROL TO LIMIT THE CADMIUM IN SLUDGE TO PRESCRIBED LEVELS. IT IS OUR ESTIMATE THAT WITH COMPLETE SOURCE CONTROL -- THAT IS NO INDUSTRIAL IMPUT -- WE WOULD HAVE ON THE ORDER OF 20 TO 25 MILLIGRAMS PER KILOGRAM OF CADMIUM IN OUR SLUDGE. AT A NITROGEN LOADING RATE -- OR THE AMOUNT OF SLUDGE NECESSARY TO SUPPLY NUTRIENTS FOR CROP GROWTH -- THE CADMIUM APPLICATION RATE WOULD EXCEED THE 1986 RATE OF .5 KILOGRAM PER HECTARE, EVEN WHEN WE HAD VERY ------- 21 COMPLETE SOURCE CONTROL. THE PORTION OF THE REGULATION THAT I HAVE BEEN TALKING MOST ABOUT REFERS TO LOADING RATES AND NUMERICAL RATES FOR CADMIUM. THERE IS A COMPARABILITY SECTION THAT ALLOWS BYPASSING ALL THAT INFORMATION AND MERELY ASSESSING THE CADMIUM CONTENT OF CROPS OR ANIMALS SITUATED WITH THE SLUDGE. I THINK THIS SECTION NEEDS CLEARER DEFINITION AS TO WHAT "COMPARABILITY" MEANS. WHAT IS A COMPARABLE CADMIUM CONCENTRATION? IN OTHER WORDS, HOW MUCH DIFFERENCE CAN IT BE ALLOWED TO BE? AND, SECONDLY, AND MORE IMPORTANTLY, THAT LOCAL COMPARISONS -- THAT IS BETWEEN CROPS GROWN ON SLUDGE-MANAGED LAND AND LOCAL MARKETPLACE CROPS -- MIGHT NOT BE FAIR. MAINLY BECAUSE CERTAIN AREAS MAY HAVE NATURAL IMPUT OF CADMIUM THROUGH SOIL. THERE IS AN EXAMPLE A FAMOUS EXAMPLE -- IN CALIFORNIA, SALINAS VALLEY, WHERE ONE WOULD BE ABLE TO APPLY A LOT OF SLUDGE AND STILL NOT EXCEED THE MARKET VALUE OF CADMIUM. THE CONVERSE IS ALSO TRUE, IT MIGHT BE MORE FAIR TO COMPARE IT TO THE NATIONAL MARKET BASKET ANALYSIS FOR CADMIUM. LET ME STRAY AWAY FROM CADMIUM NOW AND TALK ABOUT PATHOGENS. ------- 22 A ONE-YEAR WAITING PERIOD IS REQUIRED FOR USE OF SLUDGE TO SOIL FOR EDIBLE CROP PRODUCTION. I THINK THAT A CLAUSE LIKE THAT NEEDS TO BE ADDED TO THE END OF THE STATEMENT IN REGARD TO ADDITIONAL PATHOGEN CONTROL MEASURES SUCH AS ADEQUATE COMPOSTING OR HEAT TREATMENT THAT COULD BE EMPLOYED TO ALLEVIATE THE ONE-YEAR WAITING PERIOD. IN THE PREAMBLE OF THE RCRA REQUIREMENTS THERE IS A SET OF FIVE CRITERIA FOR SLUDGE UTILIZATION ON LAND THAT OPERATING AGENCIES MUST ADHERE TO. THESE FIVE CRITERIA ARE: ANALYSIS OF SLUDGE FOR CADMIUM; THAT THE OPERATING AGENCY IS SURE THAT THE SLUDGE IS STABILIZED; THAT THE OPERATING AGENCY DETERMINE APPROPRIATE RATES, AND ASSURE COMPLIANCE WITH THOSE RATES; THAT THE AGENCY DESIGN MONITORING SYSTEMS, AND ASSURE THAT THESE ARE CARRIED OUT AND THAT CONTINGENCY PLANS BE ESTABLISHED. AT LEAST TWO OF THOSE CRITERIA WOULD BE DIFFICULT FOR MANY MUNICIPAL AGENCIES TO COMPLY WITH SIMPLY BECAUSE IF THE SLUDGE IS GIVEN OR SOLD TO AGRICULTURAL INTERESTS, MOST MUNICIPAL AGENCIES ARE NOT GOING TO BE ABLE TO ENFORCE OR REGULATE THE ACTIVITIES OF THOSE PEOPLE. IN CALIFORNIA, I KNOW THIS IS TRUE, BECAUSE THE ENABLING LEGISLATION FOR SANITATION IN DISTRICTS IN ------- 23 CALIFORNIA WOULD NOT ALLOW US TO REGULATE THE PRODUCTS. WE CAN REGULATE OUR FACILITIES FOR INDUSTRIAL CONTROL BUT NOT AT THE OTHER END. WE CAN DO THAT THROUGH AGREEMENT BUT THERE WOULD BE NOTHING IN OUR ENABLING LEGISLATION THAT WOULD ALLOW US TO REQUIRE A FARMER TO AGREE THAT WE CAN REGULATE HIS ACTIVITIES. LET ME MAKE ONE FINAL PHILOSOPHICAL COMMENT. I THINK WE CAN ALL AGREE THAT THE NITROGEN IN THE SLUDGE SHOULD BE REGARDED AS A RECOVERABLE AND A USEFUL RESOURCE. WE CAN ALSO AGREE THAT THE HEALTH EFFECTS OF CADMIUM ARE POORLY UNDERSTOOD, AND THERE IS DIVERGENT SCIENTIFIC OPINION EVEN WITHIN THE EPA. MY PLEA IS THAT REASONABLE AND CAREFUL HEALTH ASSESSMENT BE CARRIED OUT, AND THAT OVERLY RESTRICTIVE REGULATIONS SHOULD NOT BE ESTABLISHED AT THIS TIME. ONCE SUCH REGULATIONS BECOME LAW A DECISION WILL BE MADE; IRREVERSIBLE EXPENDITURES OF MONEYS WILL BE MADE, AND THAT WE CANNOT EXPECT TO BACKTRACK FROM THESE DECISIONS WHEN ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON HEALTH RISKS BECOMES AVAILABLE. THANK YOU. DR. SKINNER: THANK YOU. ANY QUESTIONS FROM THE PANEL? I HAVE A FEW QUESTIONS. ------- WILL YOU ELABORATE ON YOUR COMMENT WITH RESPECT TO CADMIUM EXTRACT TESTS? AMD HOW THAT WOULD WORK, AND PERHAPS COMPARE THAT TO THE PROVISION IN THE CRITERIA WHERE THE CROP CAN BE COMPARED TO OTHER CROPS LOCALLY GROWN, PLEASE? MR. SELNA: YES. I AM NOT A SOIL SCIENTIST AND SO I WOULDN'T BE PREPARED TO STATE THAT ANY EXTRACT METHOD WOULD BE THE PERFECT METHOD. I UNDERSTAND THAT THERE ARE METHODS THAT FAIRLY WELL REPRESENT THE AVAILABILITY OF MATERIALS IN SOIL TO PLANTS. ONE OF THEM IS, AS I UNDERSTAND IT, A DPTA EXTRACT. IN COMPARISON WITH THE COMPARABILITY CRITERIA, T THINK THAT IT PROVIDES AN AGENCY WITH AN ADVANCED WARNING -- OR AN ADVANCED ABILITY TO DETECT A CADMIUM UPTAKE PROBLEM RATHER THAN AN AFTER-THE-FACT PROBLEM WHERE A FARMER'S CROP MIGHT BE DISQUALIFIED. SO I THINK IT IS A MORE WORKABLE CRITERIA. DR. SKINNER: r SEEM TO BE FACED WITH THE SAME PROBLEM THAT YOU RAISED WITH RESPECT TO THE COMPARABILITY CRITERIA IN THE FINDING AND ACCEPTABLE LEVEL OF UPTAKE OR DEFINING WHAT COMPARABILITY IS. IS THAT CORRECT? MR. SELNA: I THINK SO. ------- 25 DR. SKINNER: ANOTHER QUESTION WITH RESPECT TO YOUR COMMENT ON THE FACT THAT IF YOU COMPLETELY ELIMINATED INDUSTRIAL IMPUTS INTO YOUR SEWERAGE IMPUT AT NITROGEN LOADING RATES THAT YOU WOULD REDUCE THE CADMIUM CONCENTRATION OF THE SLUDGE DOWN TO 25 PARTS PER MIL, I BELIEVE YOU SAID. AND THAT YOU SAID THAT AT THE NITROGEN LOADING RATE FOR CROPS THAT WOULD NOT ALLOW YOU TO COMPLY WITH THE 1985 REQUIREMENT WHICH IS .5 KILOGRAMS PER HECTARE. THAT WOULD HAVE TO BE BASED UPON A CERTAIN NITROGEN AVAILABILITY IN THE SLUDGE, AND A CERTAIN APPLICATION RATE OF THE SLUDGE TO THE CROP. WOULD YOU TELL ME THE BASIS FOR THAT CALCULATION AND WHAT LOADING RATE IN KILOGRAMS PER HECTARE YOU WOULD BE ABLE TO COMPLY WITH A 25 EPM SLUDGE? MR. SELNA: YES. MY CALCULATION IS ONE THAT PERTAINS TO COMPOSTED SLUDGE. YOU MAY BE AWARE THAT IN COMPOSTING SLUDGE HIGH NITROGEN LOSS OCCURS, SO TO SUPPLY THE NECESSARY NUTRIENTS FOR PLANT GROWTH YOU HAVE TO APPLY MORE SLUDGE. I ASSUMED FULL AVAILABILITY OF THE NITROGEN. WE DON'T HAVE ANY AMMONIA LEFT IN COMPOSTED SLUDGE, AND, THEREFORE, WE DON'T HAVE ANY AMMONIA LOSS. THAT'S A CONSERVATIVE ASSUMPTION, BUT I MEAN THAT ------- 26 I BELIEVE THAT THE CADMIUM LOADING RATE CALCULATED TO BE .6 OR .7 KILOGRAMS PER HECTARE. DR. SKINNER: BUT THAT WAS FOR COMPOSTED SLUDGE? MR. SELNA: YES, THAT'S CORRECT. DR. SKINNER: ONE OTHER COMMENT, OR QUESTION. WITH RESPECT TO YOUR COMMENT ON THE ONE-YEAR WAITING PERIOD, YOU INDICATED THAT THE CRITERIA SHOULD PROVIDE FOR REDUCING THAT WAITING PERIOD IN COMPOST OTHER STABILIZATION METHODS WERE USED. DO YOU HAVE INFORMATION AVAILABLE THAT INDICATES THAT COMPOSTING AND STABILIZATION IS EFFECTIVE IN REDUCING VARIOUS PATHOGENS IN SLUDGE SO THAT A SHORTER WAITING PERIOD WOULD BE PERMISSIBLE? MR. SELNA: YES, WE DO. WE HAVE DATA FROM PERIODS WHEN WE WERE ABLE TO CONTROL THE COMPOST PROCESS VERY WELL. TURNS OUT THAT WE DON'T PRESENTLY DO THAT, BECAUSE WE HAVE A CHANGE IN OUR DE-WATERING PRACTICE. THE DATA THAT WE HAVE INDICATE THAT WHEN 60 DEGREES CENTIGRADE IS REACHED FOR A PERIOD OF A FEW DAYS, CONSECUTIVE DAYS, THAT WE HAVE EXCELLENT KILLS OF ASPERGILLUS, SALMONELLA AND VIRUSES. WE HAVE DONE TWO YEARS WORTH OF MONITORING OF OUR COMPOST OPERATION TO DETECT THAT. AS I SAID, WE HAVE HAD A MINOR CHANGE -- NOT A ------- MINOR CHANGE -- WE HAVE HAD A DRASTIC CHANGE IN OUR DE-WATERING PROGRAM AND WE ARE NOW STUDYING UNDER AN EPA GRANT DIFFERENT METHODS FOR COMPOSTING THAT HAVE BEEN METHODS SIMILAR TO THOSE USED IN BELLVILLE. DR. SKINNER: THANK YOU, VERY MUCH. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS FROM THE PANEL? MR. VAN HEUIT. MR. VAN HEUIT: I'M ROBERT VAN HEUIT, AND I AM ALSO FROM THE COUNTY SANITATION DISTRICT, AND MY COMMENTS ON THE CRITERIA WILL BE ON THAT PORTION OF THE CRITERIA EXCLUSIVE OF THE SEWAGE DISPOSAL SINCE MIKE SELNA HAS VERY APTLY COVERED THE SUBJECT ON THAT. WE OF THE SANITATION DISTRICTS ARE PARTICULARLY CONCERNED WITH PORTIONS OF THE CRITERIA, BECAUSE WE RECOGNIZE -- AND WE THINK THAT THE EPA RECOGNIZES -- THAT THE CURRENT TECHNOLOGY FOR DISPOSAL FOR THAT MAJORITY OF THE SOLID WASTE PRODUCED IN THE UNITED STATES IS TO THE LAND, AND THAT THE MOST IMPORTANT OBJECTIVE IN THE CRITERIA IS TO OPERATE ALL OF THE DUMPS TO SANITARY LAND FILLS. YET THE LANGUAGE IN SOME AREAS APPEARS TO BE SOMEWHAT NEGATIVE ABOUT LAND DISPOSAL, EMPHASIZING PROBLEMS THAT MAY ONLY APPLY TO A MINORITY OF LAND DISPOSAL FACILITIES RATHER THAN TO THE MAJORITY, AT LEAST THE WELL RUN FACILITIES. WE HOPE THAT THIS LANGUAGE CAN BE MODIFIED AND ------- BE MORE SUPPORTIVE OF PROPERLY RUN LAND DISPOSAL FACILITIES SO THAT THEY WILL BE AVAILABLE IN THE FUTURE AS ACTIVE PARTNERS TO RESOURCE RECOVERY FACILITIES AS THEY ARE DEVELOPED. AS AN ACTIVE PARTNER I'M REFERRING TO THESE FACILITIES AS BEING THE REPOSITORY FOR THOSE WASTES THAT EVEN RESOURCE RECOVERY FACILITIES DO PRODUCE. WE THINK, IN ADDITION, THAT THE CRITERIA NEEDS TO HAVE SOME ADDED FLEXIBILITY WHICH WILL ALLOW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES -- I'M TALKING ABOUT LOCAL AND STATE ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES -- TO HAVE A PRACTICAL OUTLOOK ON THE OPERATION OF THE FACILITIES. THERE ARE SOME AREAS THAT ARE BOUND TO DEVELOP IN ANY FACILITY WHERE MINOR MALFUNCTIONS, BOTH MECHANICAL OR HUMAN ERROR, DO OCCUR THAT MAY PUT A FACILITY INOPERATIVE. LOCAL ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES SHOULD HAVE THE ABILITY TO SET PRACTICAL OPERATING RULES THAT WILL ALLOW CONTINUATION OF THESE NECESSARY DISPOSAL FACILITIES AT TIMES OF MINOR VIOLATIONS AND ALLOW THE USERS OF THE FACILITIES NOT TO ENDURE UNUSUAL HARDSHIPS DURING THESE PERIODS OF TIME. SOME OF THE LIMITS AND A NUMBER OF THEM HAVE ALREADY BEEN REFERRED TO BY MIKE -- APPEAR TO BE PARTICULARLY CONSERVATIVE. WE WOULD HOPE THAT THESE ------- 29 LIMITS WOULD BE INVESTIGATED VERY CLOSELY SO THAT THEY WILL BE PRACTICAL INITIALLY, AND, CERTAINLY, WITH THE IDEA THAT THEY CAN BE RAISED OR LOWERED AS APPEARS TO BE WARRANTED IN THE FUTURE, BASED ON FUTURE RESEARCH THAT NEEDS TO BE DONE IN MANY AREAS. THE SANITATION DISTRICT PLANS TO PREPARE A VERY DETAILED RESPONSE TO THE CRITERIA PRIOR TO THE COMPLETION OF THE PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD, AND IN THAT RESPONSE WE WILL PROPOSE CHANGES IN THE LANGUAGE IN THE CRITERIA THAT HOPEFULLY WILL IMPROVE IT AND MAKE THE CRITERIA A PRACTICAL AND USEFUL DOCUMENT. THANK YOU. DR. SKINNER: THANK YOU. ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS FROM THE PANEL? MR. GARVIN: YES, I HAVE ONE. YOU SUGGESTED THAT THE CRITERIA OUGHT TO BE CHANGED IN SOME MANNER SO THEY ALLOW FLEXIBILITY FOR PRACTICAL OPERATING MEANS. CAN YOU GIVE ANY SPECIFIC INSTANCES OF WHICH PROVISIONS IN THE PROPOSED CRITERIA YOU FEEL ARE TOO STRICT AS WRITTEN? MR. VAN HEUIT: WELL, I THINK THAT THERE ARE A NUMBER OF PROVISIONS THAT -- MINOR VIOLATIONS OF WHICH COULD TECHNICALLY OR THE CRITERIA CAUSE A SANITARY LANDFILL -- BECAUSE IN VIOLATION IT WOULD BE KIND OF ------- 30 OPENED UP. IF, FOR INSTANCE, IN A GAS MIGRATION PREVENTION SYSTEM -- A MECHANICAL SYSTEM -- YOU HAD A BELT BREAK AND HAD A MINOR MIGRATION OF GAS FOR A VERY SHORT PERIOD OF TIME WHILE IT TAKES A PERIOD OF TIME THAT IT TAKES TO REPLACE THE BELT, THIS WOULD TECHNICALLY MAKE THE SANITARY LANDFILL INTO AN OPEN BELT, WHICH WOULD MEAN THEN THAT IT WAS NOT LEGALLY OPERATIVE. IT IS A VERY TECHNICAL POINT, I ADMIT, BUT THERE NEEDS TO BE, I THINK, SOME FLEXIBILITY SO THAT THOSE OF US WHO ARE OPERATORS OF LARGE LANDFILL FACILITIES -- OPERATORS OF SMALL ONES HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM -- CAN CONTINUE TO SERVE THE PUBLIC AS WELL AS CORRECT THOSE SITUATIONS. LOCAL ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES IN THE PAST HAVE DONE A GOOD JOB OF INSURING THAT THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY IS PROTECTED. BUT FROM A PRACTICAL ASPECT THAT -- IF YOU TAKE A MINOR SITUATION AND SHUT DOWN A FACILITY THERE MAY BE A MINOR HEALTH PROBLEM DEVELOPED AS A RESULT OF THAT. MR. GARVIN: SO YOU WOULD BE RECOMMENDING THAT THERE BE SOME KIND OF PROVISION FOR AN OFFSET BREAKDOWN OR MALFUNCTIONS OF EQUIPMENT? MR. VAN HEUIT: I THINK THAT THERE NEEDS TO BE A PROVISION THAT ALLOWS LOCAL ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES TO BE ------- 31 ABLE TO TAKE PRACTICAL ACTIONS IN CASE OF THOSE KINDS OF MINOR I LIKE TO STRESS THE WORD MINOR -- PROBLEMS THAT WOULD, FROM A TECHNICAL STANDPOINT, PLACE A SANITARY LANDFILL IN THE CATEGORY SUBJECT TO BECOMING AN OPEN DUMP BY THE DEFINITIONS IN THE CRITERIA. MR. GARVIN: THANK YOU. DR. SKINNER: THANK YOU. MR. HENRY HYDE? MR. HYDE: YES. I AM HENRY HYDE, H-Y-D-E. AND I REPRESENT THE SAN FRANCISCO BAY REGION WASTE WATER SOLID STUDY. THIS IS A JOINT POWERS GROUP WHICH WAS ESTABLISHED IN MAY OF 1976 TO STUDY THE SLUDGE MANAGEMENT PROBLEM IN THE BAY REGION AND TO COME UP WITH A REGIONAL PLAN AND FACILITIES PLANT FOR THE FOUR LARGEST AGENCIES IN THE REGION. THERE ARE 55 OR SO WASTE WATER AGENCIES IN THE BAY REGION, TOTALLY. THEY REPRESENT ABOUT 25 PERCENT OF THE SLUDGE PRODUCED IN THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA. COMBINED WITH THE LOS ANGELES BASIN WE HANDLE TOGETHER ABOUT 75 PERCENT OF THE SLUDGE IN THE STATE. LOS ANGELES HANDLES ABOUT 50 PERCENT OF;ALL THE SLUDGE IN CALIFORNIA. I WOULD LIKE TONIGHT TO JUST GIVE SOME BRIEF UNOFFICIAL COMMENTS. WE DIDN'T HAVE MUCH TIME TO ------- 32 REVIEW THE REGULATION IN DETAIL OR PREPARE A WRITTEN STATEMENT. WE ARE IN THE PROCESS OF PREPARING WRITTEN STATEMENTS AND HAVING OUR STATEMENT REVIEWED BY OUR WASTE WATER AGENCY. WE WILL SUBMIT WRITTEN COMMENTS, AND PROBABLY SEE THE IMPORTANCE OF THIS. VERY BRIEFLY, BASED ON WORK WE HAVE DONE ON OUR FIELD EXPERIMENTS OVER FIVE YEARS, BASED ON GREENHOUSE EXPERIMENTS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT RIVERSIDE AND BASED ON REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE, AND ACTUALLY EXPERIENCED IN USING SLUDGE IN AGRICULTURE OVER SEVERAL HUNDREDS OF YEARS, IT IS NOT A NEW IDEA, OBVIOUSLY, WE QUESTION THE NEED FOR NUMERICAL CRITERIA SUCH AS PROPOSED IN THIS REGULATION. AS A MATTER OF FACT, WE QUESTION THE NEED FOR ANY CRITERIA SUCH AS THIS PROPOSED AT ALL. THE BASIC REASON FOR THAT IS THAT, FIRST OF ALL, WE QUESTION THE BASIS FOR THE CRITERIA AS IT RELATES TO THE IMPACT ON HUMAN HEALTH. I THINK WE WOULD AGREE WITH MR. SELNA THAT FOR A START THAT AT BEST THE BASIS FOR THESE CRITERIA, AS WE UNDERSTAND IT, THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION WORK IS VERY QUESTIONABLE. THERE IS SOME LATER INFORMATION THAT IS BEING DEVELOPED THAT WOULD INDICATE THAT WE PROBABLY AREN'T ON THE THRESHOLD OF CADMIUM POISONING AS WAS ORIGINALLY ------- 33 THOUGHT. WITHOUT A SOUND BASIS FOR THE REGULATION TO START WITH WE, THEREFORE, WOULD QUESTION THE REGULATION ITSELF. WE THINK THAT IF YOU'RE GOING TO REGULATE SEWAGE SLUDGE FOR BENEFICIAL USE IN AGRICULTURE AS WELL AS EVENTUALLY THE SALE OF COMPOST PRODUCTS AND SO FORTH WHICH WILL HAPPEN, THAT YOU SHOULD HAVE VERY SOUND BASIS FOR DOING SO, ESPECIALLY IN LIGHT OF EPA'S POLICY WITH ENCOURAGEMENT OF BENEFICIAL USE RECOVERY OF NUTRIENTS AND SO FORTH IN SLUDGE SLUICES. SOME FAIRLY OTHER OBVIOUS FACTS. FIRST OF ALL, THE AMOUNT OF SEWAGE SLUDGE AVAILABLE AS USED IN AGRICULTURE WOULD NOT SIGNIFICANTLY IMPACT ON PRODUCTS GROWN IN COMMERCIAL AGRICULTURE TODAY. WE ESTIMATE YOU MIGHT IMPACT PERHAPS ONE PERCENT OF ALL THE AGRICULTURE PRODUCTS GROWN IN THE UNITED STATES. IN OUR WORK IN SOLANO COUNTY WITH OUR FIELD CORN WE WOULD IMPACT APPROXIMATELY ONE PERCENT OF THE FUEL CORN CROP GROWN IN SOLANO COUNTY. WHEN YOU MIX THAT IN WITH OTHER CROPS AND IF YOU IMPLEMENT PRACTICES WHICH ARE FAIRLY -- WELL, GOOD, SOUND MANAGEMENT PRACTICES, WHICH IS THE KEY, WE WOULD FIND IT HARD TO BELIEVE IN ------- HAVING ANYBODY PROVE TO US THAT YOU'RE GOING TO CREATE A SIGNIFICANT HEALTH PRODUCT FROM USING SEWERAGE SLUDGE IN AGRICULTURE. GENERALLY IN COMMERCIAL AGRICULTURE. IF THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION AND FDA IS REALLY CONCERNED ABOUT CADMIUM IN THE DIET, AND THEIR CONCERN IS VALID, WE WOULD BE -- WASTE WATER AGENCIES ARE A VERY RESPONSIBLE TYPE OF AGENCY -- WELL, WE'D BE THE FIRST ONES TO NOT USE SLUDGE IN AGRICULTURE. IF THE FACT THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION AND FDA ARE CONCERNED ABOUT CADMIUM IN THE DIET IS VALID, AND SINCE _\£ERY LITTLE SLUDGE IS USED IN AGRICULTURE TODAY, IT WOULD SEEM TO US THAT IF YOU REALLY WANT A CONTROLLED PROBLEM YOU WOULD CONTROL, YOU KNOW, THE SOURCE OF THE PROBLEM, OR CONTROL THE PROBLEM THROUGH -- BASED ON EXISTING AGRICULTURAL PRACTICES RATHER THAN TO TRY TO CONTROL IT THROUGH SLUDGE BECAUSE OUR OPINION IS THAT THROUGH CONTROL OF SLUDGE YOU'RE NOT GOING TO MAKE ANY IMPACT WHATSOEVER ON ANY POTENTIAL CADMIUM PROBLEM IN AGRICULTURE. IT'S JUST AS SIMPLE AS THAT. YOU ARE NOT GOING TO GROW ENOUGH CROPS WITH SLUDGE TO MAKE ANY IMPACT, NO MATTER WHAT. THEN, YOU KNOW, THERE COULD BE LOCAL EXCEPTIONS. IF A FARMER GREW ONLY .HIS CROPS ON SLUDGE AND ONLY FED THIS TO HIS CATTLE, AND THAT SORT OF THING. ------- 35 BUT WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT IN GENERAL, IF YOU REALLY WANT TO SPEND YOUR ENERGY IN THE AREAS WHERE IT WOULD REALLY DO THE MOST GOOD, WE SUGGEST THAT YOU GO AFTER THE PROBLEM INSTEAD OF REGULATING SEWER SLUDGE. FOR US IN THE BAY AREA WE FOUND THAT COMPOST MARKETING AND AGRICULTURAL USE ARE THE PRIMARY USED PROJECTS. OR LAND RECLAMATION IS ALSO POSSIBLE. BUT REMEMBER THAT IN LAND RECLAMATION WE RECLAIM LAND FOR A PURPOSE. USUALLY THAT PURPOSE IS TO RECLAIM IT SO WE CAN USE IT. WE WORK WITH FARMERS WHO ARE TRYING TO RECLAIM AGRICULTURAL LAND, SO IT IS ECONOMICALLY ADVANTAGEOUS FOR THEM TO FARM THAT LAND, AND IF WE RECLAIM IT WITH SEWER SLUDGE AND THEN TURN AROUND AND SAY YOU CAN'T GROW ANYTHING ON IT BECAUSE OF THIS CADMIUM REGULATION, IT PROBABLY WOULDN'T BE RECLAIMED IN THE FIRST PLACE WITH SEWER SLUDGE. LET ME MENTION THAT OUR ANALYSIS SHOWED THAT AGRICULTURE USE AND COMPONENT MARKETING IS COMPETITIVE ON A COST AND ENERGY BASIS AND IS COMPETITIVE IN ALMOST ALL OTHER RESPECTS IN TERMS OF THE SOCIAL IMPACT ANALYSIS AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ANALYSIS. AND WE ALSO LOOKED AT THE RISK ANALYSIS AND IMPLICATION CONSTRAINT ON ANALYSIS, AND THE PRIMARY REASON WHY THE LARGE URBAN AGENCIES IN THE BAY REGION ------- 36 WILL NOT IMPLEMENT -- AND I'M SAYING PROBABLY BECAUSE IT DOESN'T LOOK LIKE THEY WILL AT THIS TIME -- WILL NOT IMPLEMENT A FAIRLY LARGE-SCALE AGRICULTURE USE PROJECT IS BECAUSE OF THESE TYPES OF REGULATIONS WHERE THE AGENCIES FEEL THAT ALTHOUGH OUR STUDIES HAVE SHOWN THAT UNDER CONTROLLED CONDITIONS YOU CAN MANAGE A PROJECT, AND ALTHOUGH OUR ANALYSIS SHOWS THIS IS A VERY COMPETITIVE METHOD, THEY ARE NOT WILLING TO INVEST FIFTEEN OR TWENTY MILLION DOLLARS INTO CAPITAL FACILITIES EVEN AT 87 1/2 PERCENT GRANT FUNDING AND RISK THE ASSOCIATED IMPLEMENTATION OPERATION WITH THAT KIND OF PROJECT WITHOUT ANY KIND OF ASSURANCE THAT WE CAN OPERATE THAT PROJECT OVER A LONG TERM. WE FEEL THAT OUR BACKGROUND WORK IN BOTH OUR FIELD TESTS AND OUR GREENHOUSE TESTS, AND THROUGH IMPLEMENTATION OF PROPER MANAGEMENT METHODS -- AND WE SEE THREE ITEMS THERE "SOURCE CONTROL" "ADEQUATE SLUDGE PROCESSING" AND "ADEQUATE MONITORING OF THE SLUDGE," AND THE SITE -- THAT WE COULD OPERATE A SYSTEM IN THAT AREA -- IN OUR AREA -- AND I'M TOLD ON CERTAIN SITES THEY HAVE ALREADY BEEN IDENTIFIED OVER A LONG TERM WITHOUT ANY PROBLEM. NOW, I AM NOT SAYING THAT WE KNOW ALL THE ANSWERS. WE AGREE THERE ARE UNKNOWNS. BUT IN GENERAL WE FEEL THAT BASICALLY WHAT MIKE SELNA SAID IS THAT WE WOULD ------- 37 CAUTION THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THESE KINDS OF REGULATIONS AT THIS TIME THAT WOULD IN EFFECT -- AND I CAN TELL YOU FROM OUR PRESENT WORKING IN THE BAY AREA THAT PRE-AMENDMENT BENEFICIAL USE PROJECTS -- FORCE LARGE AGENCIES WITHOUT AN ADEQUATE BASIS, IN FACT, FOR YOUR ASSESSMENT OF THE HEALTH IMPACTS. AND I WOULD RECOMMEND THAT YOU WORK -- AND I HAD A SOUND BASIS FOR THESE SO-CALLED HEALTH RISKS PRIOR TO DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION OF SUCH A REGULATION BASED ON STRICT CRITERION STANDARDS. THAT IS ALL I HAD TO SAY. I APPRECIATE THE CHANCE TO COMMENT. WE ARE PREPARING A FORMAL COMMENT AND WE WILL SUBMIT THAT TO YOU IN THE NEAR FUTURE. MR. SKINNER: THANK YOU. ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS BY THE PANEL? MR. CHANNELL: YES. IN YOUR STUDIES IN THE BAY AREA HAVE YOU EXAMINED THE AVAILABILITY OF NON-FOOD CHAIN USE FOR SLUDGE? MR. HYDE: YES, WE HAVE LOOKED AT THAT AND IT'S SOMEWHAT HARD TO FIND, FOR EXAMPLE, CIVIL CULTURE. WE HAVE LOOKED AT AREAS IN THE BAY AREA WE MIGHT USE IN CIVIL CULTURE. IT JUST SO HAPPENS THAT WE HAVEN'T IDENTIFIED ANY VERY SIGNIFICANT AREAS IN WHICH THIS ------- 38 COULD BE DONE. FOR EXAMPLE, IN SOLANO COUNTY AREA fktf. WHERE WE ARE WORKING NOW THERE HARDLY ANY FORESTS IN THAT PARTICULAR AREA. WE HAVE LOOKED AT PROPOSALS FOR EVEN STARTING A FOREST AND USING CERTAIN WOOD PRODUCTS DOWN THE RIVER IN ANTIOCH AT A PULP MILL, AND WE HAVE LOOKED AT THAT KIND OF THING. THERE ARE FORESTED AREAS ALONG THE COAST BUT THE TERRAIN AND ACCESSIBILITY TO THOSE AREAS, PLUS A LOT IS IN THE NATIONAL PARK AREA NOW, OUR INDICATIONS, IN DISCUSSING THIS WITH SOME OF THE FEDERAL AGENCIES THAT CONTROL THAT LAND, PLUS THE FACT IT WOULD BE VERY DIFFICULT TO EVEN GET IN THERE AND OPERATE A SYSTEM, PRECLUDES MOST OF THOSE COASTAL AREAS. THERE ARE OTHER VALLEYS LIKE THE LIVERMORE, AMADOR VALLEYS; YOU GET OUT OVER THE HILLS FROM THE BAY, THAT HAVE AGRICULTURAL AREAS. BUT NOT MUCH IN TERMS OF FOREST AREAS IN THE REGION. THERE ARE SOME AREAS IN THE SOUTH COUNTY SOUTH SANTA CLARA AREA WHICH WE INVESTIGATED THAT HAD SOME FORESTS, BUT WE WERE PRETTY WELL TOLD THAT THEY DIDN'T WANT A SLUDGE OPERATION DOWN IN THAT PARTICULAR AREA. I THINK SOME OF THE MOST COMMON NON-FOOD AREAS IN TERMS OF RECLAMATION IS NUMEROUS GRAVEL PITS AND ------- 39 QUARRIES IN THE AREA, BUT THEY ARE FAIRLY WELL SPREAD OUT AND THEY WOULD PROBABLY BE MOST ADVANTAGEOUS IN TERMS OF RECLAMATION OF THOSE LANDS BY AGENCIES LOCATED NEAR THOSE PARTICULAR SITES. BUT THERE ARE PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH THOSE KINDS OF SITES IN TERMS OF GROUNDWATER AND SO FORTH. MR. DE GEARE: I THINK YOU MENTIONED THREE CONTROLS THAT YOU WOULD RECOMMEND. WOULD YOU RESTATE THOSE, PLEASE? MR. HYDE: YES. THE THREE BASIC CONTROLS -- THIS IS NOTHING NEW -- IS SOURCE CONTROL, AND WE THINK THAT HAS LIMITATIONS. WE ARE IN THE PROCESS OF TRYING TO PUT TOGETHER SOURCE CONTROL PRODUCT IMPLEMENTATION IN THE BAY REGION. I JUST RECENTLY REVIEWED -- IN FACT ON THE WAY DOWN ON THE AIRPLANE -- FEDERAL PRE-TREATMENT I r PROPOSALS FOR CADMIUM, AND I READ,\ IS AN INSTANTANEOUS ONE MILLIGRAM PER LITER AND A 30-DAY AVERAGE OF .5. WE ALREADY MEET THAT IN THE BAY REGION WITH OUR SOURCE CONTROL PROGRAMS. WE WERE ABLE TO OBTAIN AROUND 50 PARTS MILLIGRAMS PER CADMIUM SLUDGE IN THE REGION. WE APPLY THAT -- ABOUT TEN TONS PER ACRE PER YEAR, WHICH WORKS OUT TO ABOUT A POUND OF CADMIUM PER ACRE OR A KILOGRAM PER HECTARE AT THE PRESENT TIME. UNDER YOUR 1986 LOW OF A HALF A POUND, WE'D EITHER HAVE TO HAVE THE CONCENTRATION IN OUR SLUDGES ------- 40 OR DOUBLE THE LAND AREA BY HAVING APPLICATION RATES. AND, FRANKLY, WE'D BE TALKING FOR A SINGLE LARGE AGENCY AROUND 10,000 ACRES. WOULD BE A LITTLE DIFFICULT TO OBTAIN, AND WE ARE CONCERNED THAT WE MIGHT NOT BE ABLE TO HAVE THE CONCENTRATION IN THE SLUDGE THROUGH SOURCE CONTROL. I THINK MIKE KIND OF TOUCHED ON THAT, MIKE SELNA, A LITTLE BIT. WE ARE WORKING TO IDENTIFY THE POSSIBILITY FOR SOURCE CONTROL, DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM WITH REGION IX TO SEE IF WE COULD DEMONSTRATE IN FACT THAT THROUGH SOURCE CONTROL WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO MEET AT LEAST, YOU KNOW, YOUR MINIMUM REQUIREMENT. SOURCE CONTROL IS ONE ITEM. THE SECOND ONE WAS ADEQUATE SLUDGE PROCESSING. WE BELIEVE THAT SLUDGE SHOULD BE ADEQUATELY STABILIZED WHICH IS NOT VERY WELL DEFINED IN YOUR RCRA, BUT HANDLE THE DIGESTION AND TYPE OF SYSTEM. IT SHOULD BE DE-WATERED, WHICH PROVIDES THE FLEXIBILITY TO MOVE IN DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS. IF IT'S BEING USED FOR PUBLIC CONTACT, PUBLIC USE, PUBLIC SALE, WE THINK IT SHOULD BE COMPOSTED OR ITS EQUIVALENT TO PROVIDE A PATHOGEN-SAFE TYPE 1 PRODUCT. IN TERMS OF AGRICULTURAL USE WE WOULD AGREE WITH SOME FORM OF STORING OF LIQUID SLUDGE PERHAPS SIX ------- MONTHS TO A YEAR WHICH WOULD AFFECT ADDITIONAL PATHOGEN REDUCTION. BEYOND THAT WE DON'T BELIEVE THAT IT WOULD BE NECESSARY TO COMPOST THE SLUDGE PRIOR TO THE USAGE IN COMMERCIAL AGRICULTURE, BUT ADEQUATE SLUDGE PROCESSING IS A CONTROL FOR PRODUCTS IN THE ADMINISTRATIVE TREATMENT OF SLUDGE ITSELF, YOUR SLUDGE PROCESS AND YOUR SITE, AND WE AGREED THAT IN OUR REGION A LOT OF -- WELL, NOT A LOT BUT THERE ARE CERTAIN OPERATIONS THAT INVOLVE USE OF SLUDGE IN AGRICULTURE OR MARKETING TO THE PUBLIC WITHOUT ADEQUATE CONTROL. IN FACT, MOST OF THOSE TYPES OF PROJECTS CURRENTLY IN OPERATION HAVE NO CONTROL, AND I THINK IN ORDER TO ASSESS THE IMPACT OF THIS PROJECT YOU WOULD NEED TO YOU WOULD NEED MONITORING OF THE PROJECT. BUT WE FEEL A TECHNICAL BULLETIN THAT WAS ISSUED BY EPA A FEW MONTHS AGO THAT WOULD EVALUATE PROJECTS ON A CASE-BY-CASE BASIS THROUGH THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY WOULD ALSO HAVE ADEQUATE MANAGEMENT CONTROLS. WE BELIEVE THAT IS WHAT IS NEEDED AND WHAT IS NECESSARY TO IMPLEMENT AGRICULTURAL USE PROJECTS THAT WOULD BE SAFE OVER THE LONG TERM. I AM SURE THERE ARE THOSE WHO WOULD DISAGREE WITH US BUT THAT'S OUR BASIC APPROACH. DR. SKINNER: WERE THOSE THREE MANAGEMENT CONTROLS ------- 42 SOURCE CONTROL AND MANAGEMENT OF THE OPERATION AND THEN MORE MONITORING OF THE SLUDGE AND MONITORING OF THE CROP? THERE IS IMPLICIT OR EXPLICIT DETERMINATION AS TO WHAT AN ACCEPTABLE LEVEL OF UPTAKE OR ACCEPTABLE LEVEL OF LOADING THAT THE SOIL WOULD BE. WOULD YOU INDICATE WHAT YOU FEEL IT WOULD BE? MR. HYDE: WELL, OUR APPROACH IS THAT AS PART OF OUR OVERALL SITE MANAGEMENT OR MONITORING METHODS -- THE APPLICATION RATE WOULD BE CONSISTENT WITH THE NITROGEN REQUIREMENTS OF THE CROP. AND CERTAINLY WE NEED TO LOOK AT OTHER THINGS LIKE CADMIUM. BUT WITH ADEQUATE SOURCE CONTROL AND PROCESSING OF THE SLUDGE, I JUST DON'T BELIEVE, BASED ON THE WORK WE HAVE DONE THAT, AGAIN, IF YOU HAVE THE RIGHT SOILS, PH 6-5 AND A COUPLE OF THESE THINGS, THAT YOU WOULD BE IN PRETTY GOOD SHAPE. DR. SKINNER; I GUESS MY QUESTION IS WHAT IS ACCEPTABLE UPTAKE. WHAT WOULD YOU KEY YOUR SOURCE CONTROL APPLICATION RATE AND MONITORING TO? WHAT WOULD YOU LOOK FOR IN TERMS OF UPTAKE OR CADMIUM LEVEL IN THE SLUDGE THAT WOULD AID YOU 1^ A DECISION THAT PERHAPS A DIFFERENT APPROACH WOULD BE NECESSARY?" MR. HYDE: WELL -- DR. SKINNER: I GUESS MY QUESTION IS THAT ------- MANAGEMENT WITHOUT A GOAL OF MANAGEMENT MR. HYDE: RIGHT. AN APPROACH WE HAVE TAKEN IS: GIVEN OUR SLUDGE AT THE PRESENT TIME WITH OUR PRE-LEVEL OF SOURCE CONTROL, OUR APPLICATION RATE, AND SO FORTH, WE MONITOR THE CROP THAT WE GROW, BOTH THE TOTAL PLANT AND THE PLANT WHICH IS ACTUALLY FED TO THE ANIMAL, AND WE HAVE SHOWN, FOR EXAMPLE, OVER FIVE YEARS NO INCREASE WHATSOEVER COMPARED TO CROPS GROWN WITH NO SLUDGE AT ALL, JUST THROUGH SOME SIMPLE STATISTICAL SAMPLING OF OUR CROP. AND I WOULD SAY THAT WE ARE NOT CONCERNED ABOUT THAT. NOW, AT WHAT POINT ARE WE CONCERNED? WE ARE NOT AGRICULTURAL EXPERTS AND WE EMPLOY CERTAIN AGRICULTURAL EXPERTS TO ADVISE US ON THIS, AND WE WOULD EVALUATE THAT ONE THING FOR SURE, WHEN YOU MONITOR YOU KNOW WHERE YOU ARE AT, GIVEN TIME. BUT 1 DON'T KNOW IF ANYBODY COULD TELL US WHETHER WE COULD GO AT THE PRESENT TIME IN OUR CROP .01, .02 MILLIGRAM PER CADMIUM, WHICH IS ALMOST A DETECTABLE LIMIT. IF WE INCREASED THAT TEN TIMES SO WHAT? THERE IS SOME LITERATURE THAT SAYS THE AVERAGE VALUE IN CORN CROPS IS MAYBE TWO OR THEREABOUTS. I AM NOT SURE WHAT PERCENT THAT WOULD BE. BUT THIS MONITORING YOU COULD HAVE A HANDLE ON THIS. ------- FOR EXAMPLE, WE SAW SOME OF THE CROPS WHERE CADMIUM WAS INCREASING VERY RAPIDLY AND WE TOOK A LOOK AT THIS AND TRIED TO FIGURE OUT WHAT WAS GOING ON BECAUSE WE WERE CONCERNED THAT WE MIGHT BE REACHING A HIGHER TOXICANT IN GRASS, FOR EXAMPLE. WHAT I'M SAYING IS THAT YOU HAVE TO KEEP A HANDLE ON IT AND EVALUATE THE THING AS YOU GO ALONG, AND I THINK IF YOU GET OFF WITH A REASONABLY DESIGNED PROJECT THROUGH GOOD MANAGEMENT CONTROL YOU WILL PROBABLY STAY OUT OF TROUBLE FOR A WHILE. DR. SKINNER: DID I UNDERSTAND YOU CORRECTLY TO INDICATE THAT YOUR MONITORING SHOWS NO UPTAKE MR. HYDE: THAT'S CORRECT. DR. SKINNER: AS COMPARED TO SIMILAR CROPS GROWN ON SIMILAR SOILS MR. HYDE: THAT'S CORRECT. DR. SKINNER: -- IN THE SAME AREA? MR. HYDE: THAT'S CORRECT. DR. SKINNER: SO, THEREFORE, YOU WOULD BE ABLE TO -- MR. HYDE: IN THE GRAIN. DR. SKINNER: IN THE GRAIN. SO, THEREFORE, YOU WOULD BE ABLE TO COMPLY WITH THE SECOND PROVISION OF THE CRITERIA. MR. HYDE: YEAH, BUT WE WOULDN'T WANT TO DO THAT ------- 45 BECAUSE -- DR. SKINNER: WHY? MR. HYDE: WELL/ YOU TALK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, THE LEVELS OF CADMIUM AND CROPS IN THE LOCAL MARKETPLACE, AND IN MEATS. AND THE WASTEWATER AGENCY IS NOT IN THE BUSINESS OF GOING OUT AND SURVEYING MARKET BASKETS. THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND US -- WE KICKED THAT ONE AROUND HERE IN CALIFORNIA A WHILE BACK AND WHEN YOU REALLY GET INTO THAT THING, YOU KNOW, THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH REALLY IS NOT IN THE BUSINESS OF SURVEYING MARKET BASKETS AND THE STATE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE HAD NO INTEREST IN DOING THAT, EITHER, AND WHO IS GOING TO DO IT? WHEN YOU START TALKING LOCAL MARKETS ALL OF A SUDDEN, YOU KNOW, IT EXPANDS, AND WHO DESIGNS THE LOCAL MARKET? WHO IS GOING TO PROVIDE THE MONEY FOR THESE SURVEYS? WHO IS GOING TO DO THE ANALYSIS? YOU KNOW, IT CAN'T BE VERIFIED. THIS IS GOING TO BE A BASIS. BUT THIS GETS VERY, VERY COMPLICATED AND WHEN WE GOT FINISHED WE CAME BACK TO THE TEST PLOT APPROACH AND THAT IS SOME TESTS ON THE SITE AND WE USE THAT AS A CONTROL. DR. SKINNER: WOULD YOU FEEL THAT A STANDARD BASED UPON A TEST PLOT WHICH REQUIRED A TEST PLOT DEMONSTRATION TO SHOW NO INCREASE AS -COMPARED TO RCRA WOULD BE ACCEPTABLE? ------- i+6 MR. HYDE: WE THINK THAT IS MORE REASONABLE. I AM NOT SURE IT IS ACCEPTABLE BUT IT IS MORE REASONABLE. WE, IN FACT, DEVELOP, YOU KNOW, INFORMALLY, AN APPROACH WHERE YOU MIGHT ALLOW TWO TIMES IN SLUDGE CROP AND THE NON-SLUDGE CROP. THE PROBLEM IS, LIKE I SAY, IN OUR CROPS .01 OR .02. SO TWO TIMES -- OR SAY TWO TIMES OF THAT IS .0^. SO WHAT? YOU KNOW, IT'S NOT SIGNIFICANT ANYWAY, SO TWO TIMES SOMETHING, THAT IS NOT SIGNIFICANT, YOU KNOW. THAT IS THE PROBLEM. I UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU ARE COMING FROM -- MR. SKINNER: YES. MR. HYDE: THE DIFFICULTY,. BUT THIS IS A KIND OF APPROACH WE TRY TO USE. I THINK PERHAPS SOME TYPE OF PROGRAM LIKE THAT, BASED ON SOME FACTUAL BASIS OF WHAT LEVELS IN CERTAIN CROPS ARE IF YOU EXCEED THAT -- MIGHT GET INTO A PROBLEM. CERTAINLY WOULD HELP US IN TERMS OF MONITORING OUR SITE. BUT AS FAR AS I KNOW THERE IS NOT VERY MUCH DATA AROUND LIKE THAT. DATA THAT IS VALID OR USEFUL. IF WE KNEW, FOR EXAMPLE, THAT TWO PARTS PER MILLION IN CORN GRAIN FED TO CATTLE OVER A PERIOD OF TIME WOULD CREATE A CADMIUM PROBLEM IN CATTLE AND WE'RE OPERATING DOWN IN .01 OR .02, AND, SAY, OVER A TIME, ------- b7 YOU KNOW, WE STARTED COMING UP, WE COULD AT LEAST HAVE AN INDICATION OF AT WHAT POINT ARE WE GOING TO BE STARTING TO GET INTO TROUBLE. OF COURSE WHAT HAPPENS A HUNDRED YEARS FROM NOW OR 200 YEARS, AS MICHAEL SELNA SAID, WHAT IF ALL THE ORGANIC MATTER IN THE SOIL WAS DEPLETED? WHAT IF ALL YOUR CADMIUM COMES OUT IN SOLUBLE FORM? THERE ARE A LOT OF "WHAT IFS". IF THE ORGANIC CONTENT OF SOIL IS DEPLETED, PROBABLY NOT GOING TO GROW ANYTHING ON IT ANYWAY. IF YOU TRY TO COVER ALL YOUR CONTINGENCIES OR ALL CONDITIONS, THEN WHAT YOU END UP WITH IS WITH A NO RISK DEGRADATION POLICY, AND UNDER THAT SITUATION WE WON'T COMPLETE THE SLUDGE IN AGRICULTURE PERIOD. AND IF THIS IS WHAT WE REALLY WANT TO DO AND BASE THIS, IN FACT, THAT IS WHAT WE SHOULD DO, YOU KNOW, THE HEALTH IMPACT BASIS, THEN, FINE. GREAT. TELL US THAT. BUT DON'T PROMOTE A LAND APPLICATION POLICY AND THEN GIVE US A REGULATION THAT IN EFFECT DISCOURAGES THAT POLICY. Dfe. SKINKlER: FINE, THANK YOU. WE WOULD APPRECIATE ANY FURTHER COMMENTS THAT YOU WOULD HAVE ON WHAT THAT COMPARABILITY WOULD BE. MR. HYDE: YES. WE THII^K THAT IS CONTROVERSIAL, OBVIOUSLY. ------- 48 DR. SKINNER: AND WHAT ACTIONS COULD BE PRESCRIBED AND COULD BE TAKEN, BASED UPON A FINDING OF AN INCREASE OF APPROACHING COMPARABILITY LEVEL OR SOME THRESHOLD LEVEL, SOMETHING THAT YOU WOULD FIND REASONABLE; WE'D BE VERY, VERY INTERESTED IN HEARING FROM YOU. MR. HYDE: OKAY. DR. SKINNER: FINE. THANK YOU. MR. HYDE: THANK YOU. DR. SKINNER: MR. BILL DAVIS. MR. DAVIS: THANK YOU. MY NAME IS BILL DAVIS, D-A-V-I-S. I'M THE GUY WITH HALF THE SLUDGE IN THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA. I AM GOING TO TRY TO AVOID COVERING MANY OF THE THINGS THAT HENRY HAS TALKED ABOUT ALREADY. I THINK IT WOULD BE HELPFUL, THOUGH, FOR YOU AND THE SOLID WASTE PROGRAM TO HAVE A HANDLE ON SLUDGE PROBLEMS IN L.A. WE ARE TALKING ABOUT A BASIN THAT IS RINGED WITH MOUNTAINS, ABOUT THREE OR FOUR THOUSAND FEET IN ELEVATION. WE ARE TALKING ABOUT A CRITICAL AIR BASIN WHICH COUNSEL HAS JUST IDENTIFIED AS THE WORST BASIN IN THE COUNTRY. WE ARE TALKING ABOUT A SITUATION WHERE EPA AND CONGRESS HAS PROHIBITED THE DISCHARGE OF SLUDGE TO THE ------- 49 OCEAN IN CURRENT PRACTICE. SO I THINK YOU CAN SEE THE LEVEL OF CONCERN AND THE REASON FOR THE LEVEL OF CONCERN OVER THESE REGULATIONS THAT ARE GOING TO BE DEALING WITH LAND APPLICATION OF SLUDGE. THERE ARE A COUPLE OF PHILOSOPHICAL POINTS I'D LIKE TO COVER. I THINK THE EIS IN THESE REGULATIONS IS GOING TO HAVE TO DEAL VERY DIRECTLY WITH THE BASIS AND KEY POINT, THAT IS THE HEALTH HAZARD ASSOCIATION FOR CADMIUM. I HAVE SAT HERE AND HEARD AT LEAST TWO CONTRARY POINTS; APPARENTLY ONE FROM EPA'S OWN HEALTH EXPERT RESEARCH LAB, AND ONE FROM THE FDA. I THINK THE QUESTION OF MINIMIZING ADDITIONAL CADMIUM TO CROP LANDS ALSO MERITS SOME DISCUSSION ON THE EIS. WHERE IS IT COMING FROM? HOW MUCH IS GOING TO COME FROM SLUDGE? THERE ARE OTHER SOURCES. IF YOU"RE REALLY CONCERNED ABOUT CADMIUM PERHAPS THOSE OUGHT TO BE ADDRESSED. I THINK THE MONITORING REQUIREMENTS FOR THIS KIND OF ACTIVITY OUGHT TO SPELL OUT VERY CLEARLY PRAGMATICALLY, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT IN THE L.A. AREA, CAPITAL EXPENDITURES OF $500 MILLION; ANNUAL EXPENDITURES OF SOME $60 MILLION PLUS TO CARRY OUT A ------- 50 LAND APPLICATION PROGRAM. YOU ARE NOT GOING TO GET AGENCIES, EVEN YOUR OWN, TO COMMIT SPENDING MONEY OF THAT KIND UNLESS THE REQUIREMENTS ARE CLEARLY SPELLED OUT. THIS IS THE FACT OF LIFE. I THINK THE COMBINATION OF YOUR SNOWSTORM AND OUR RAINFALLS HAS DELAYED OUR SET OF THE PUBLISHED REGULATIONS. WE JUST RECEIVED THEM ABOUT MID FEBRUARY. WE WILL BE GIVING YOU DETAILED COMMENTS ON MANY OF THE POINTS COVERED, AND WE WILL GIVE THEM TO YOU IN WRITING, AND, LIKE HENRY, WE MAY MAKE IT TO PORTLAND ALSO. SO THANK YOU. DR. SKINNER: THANK YOU. ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS? MR. CLARENCE KAUFMAN. MR. KAUFMAN: THE COUNTY'S SOLID WASTE STAFF HAS CAREFULLY REVIEWED THE PROPOSED CLASSIFICATION CRITERIA FOR SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL FACILITIES IN CONJUNCTION WITH OUR COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT, REGIONAL WATER QUALITY CONTROL BOARD, AND OTHER INTERESTED PARTIES . OUR NORMAL PRACTICE IN REVIEWING PROPOSED REGULATIONS IS TO BE AS CRITICAL AS POSSIBLE, AND ON THIS OCCASION, I THINK IT IS FAIR TO SAY OUR INTENT WAS TO BE MORE CRITICAL THAN EVER. CERTAINLY, THESE REGULATIONS ARE VITALLY IMPORTANT TO THE COUNTY, AND ------- 51 ANY OTHER AGENCY WHICH HAS RESPONSIBILITY FOR OPERATING OR REGULATING LAND DISPOSAL OF SOLID WASTES. TO OUR SURPRISE, WE FOUND VERY LITTLE TO CRITICIZE. I CAN ONLY CONGRATULATE THE EPA STAFF FOR DEVELOPING SOLID WASTE FACILITY CRITERIA WHICH WILL EFFECTIVELY PROTECT THE ENVIRONMENT FROM DEGRADATION BY SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL FACILITIES, AND YET ALLOW RESPONSIBLE AGENCIES TO CONTINUE TO PROVIDE DISPOSAL SERVICE WITH A REASONABLE AMOUNT OF REGULATION. YOUR PROPOSED CRITERIA HAVE BEEN WISELY DIRECTED TOWARD A STANDARD OF PERFORMANCE TO BE ATTAINED, RATHER THAN ARBITRARY RESTRICTIONS TO BE IMPOSED ON DISPOSAL FACILITY LOCATION, DESIGN, OPERATION, AND MAINTENANCE. IT APPEARS THAT THE INTENT IS TO PLACE RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT AND ENFORCEMENT OF DETAILED REGULATIONS AT THE STATE AND LOCAL LEVEL WHICH WILL CERTAINLY ENHANCE THEIR EFFECTIVENESS. THESE CRITERIA WILL IMPACT SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL IN SAN DIEGO COUNTY IN SEVERAL WAYS. FIRST, THE PROHIBITION OF OPEN BURNING OF RESIDENTIAL WASTES WILL INCREASE THE AMOUNT OF SOLID WASTE TO BE DISPOSED IN THE MOUNTAIN AND DESERT REGIONS OF THE COUNTY. LAST YEAR, 956 BURNING PERMITS WERE ISSUED TO RESIDENTS OF THESE AREAS AND AN UNKNOWN NUMBER OF ADDITIONAL RESIDENTS BURNED THEIR WASTES WITHOUT HAVING OBTAINED ------- 52 A PERMIT. SINCE THE COUNTY PROVIDES A NUMBER OF BIN SITES AND LANDFILLS IN THESE AREAS WITHOUT COST TO THE AREA RESIDENTS, THE INCREASE IN WASTE VOLUME WILL INCREASE THE COUNTY'S COST IN PROVIDING THIS SERVICE. THE AMOUNT OF THIS INCREASE CANNOT BE ESTIMATED AT THIS TIME. ALTHOUGH SAN DIEGO COUNTY HAS FOR MANY YEARS OPERATED ITS SANITARY LANDFILLS IN COMPLIANCE WITH ALL LAWS AND REGULATIONS, IT APPEARS THAT SOME ADDITIONAL EFFORT WILL HAVE TO BE EXPENDED ON OUR PART IN PROVIDING SUFFICIENT MONITORING FOR LEACHATE AND GAS MIGRATION TO PROVIDE ASSURANCE THAT THE STANDARDS SET FORTH IN THE PROPOSED CRITERIA ARE MET. WE DO NOT EXPECT THIS EFFORT TO SIGNIFICANTLY IMPACT OUR DISPOSAL OPERATIONS. SOME SEWAGE SLUDGE IS PRESENTLY BEING DISPOSED OF IN THE COUNTY'S LANDFILLS, AND THERE IS A STRONG LIKELIHOOD THAT THESE QUANTITIES WILL GREATLY INCREASE WITHIN THE NEXT FEW YEARS, PARTICULARLY IF SECONDARY TREATMENT OF SEWAGE IS APPLIED. ALTHOUGH THE COUNTY BELIEVES ITS EXISTING INDUSTRIAL WASTE CONTROL PROGRAM PROVIDES EFFECTIVE CONTROL OVER QUANTITIES OF HEAVY METALS ENTERING THE SEWERAGE SYSTEM, THE PROPOSED PROGRAM WILL PROVIDE ADDED ASSURANCE THAT THE FOOD CHAIN IS PROTECTED FROM ------- 53 HEAVY METAL INTRUSION. WE DO NOT HAVE ANY ESTIMATE OF THE ADDITIONAL COSTS OF THIS PROGRAM AS YET. IN SUMMARY, I WOULD LIKE TO EMPHASIZE THAT WE BELIEVE THE PROPOSED CRITERIA ARE WORKABLE AND REASONABLE, AND WTLL LEAD TO SUCCESSFUL IMPLEMENTATION OF THE MANDATE OF PUBLIC LAW 9^-580. THANK YOU. DR. SKINNER: THANK YOU. ANY QUESTIONS? JIM? MR. CHANNELL: IN YOUR REFERENCE TO THE BURNING IN THE MOUNTAIN AND THE DESERT PORTION OF THE COUNTY, WERE YOU REFERRING TO BURNING OF REFUSE FOR PRIVATE INDIVIDUALS OR MR. KAUFMAN: BY PRIVATE RESIDENCES IN THE INTERIOR REGIONS OF THE COUNTY AND IS AUTHORIZED BY PERMIT FROM THE -- THEY ARE ISSUED BY VARIOUS FIRE AGENCIES -- BUT THE PERMITS ARE ISSUED CENTRALLY FROM THE AIR POLLUTION CONTROL DISTRICT. MR. CHANNELL: THANK YOU. DR. SKINNER: ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? THANK YOU. KEITH AMUNDSON. MR. AMUNDSON: DR. SKINNER, WE HAVE NO COMMENT AT THIS TIME OTHER THAN THE FACT THAT W6 HAVE ONLY RECENTLY RECEIVED THE CRITERIA AND HAVE NOT HAD THE ------- 54 OPPORTUNITY TO REVIEW THEM IN DEPTH. HOWEVER, I MIGHT JUST SAY AS A MATTER OF RECORD, THAT WE DO ANTICIPATE PROVIDING A DETAILED COMMENTARY ON THE CRITERIA AT A LATER DATE, PERHAPS AT THE SEATTLE MEETING. DR. SKINNER: THANK YOU. THAT IS IN PORTLAND. THE PORTLAND MEETING. MR. AMUNDSON: PORTLAND. MR. GARVIN: WHO DO YOU REPRESENT? MR. AMUNDSON: STATE SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT BOARD, STATE OF CALIFORNIA. DR. SKINNER: MR. KELLOGG. MR. KELLOGG: MY NAME IS CLAY KELLOGG, K-E-L-L-O-G-G. I REPRESENT THE MARKETING BRAf^ttOF THE L.A. COUNTY SANITATION DISTRICT. OUR COMPANY HAS BEEN IN BUSINESS 52 YEARS. THE FIRST 25 YEARS WERE STRICTLY AGRICULTURE, AND WE HAVE SEEN THE TREMENDOUS RESULTS FROM THE USE OF SEWERAGE SLUDGE WHICH HAVE BEEN VERY FAVORABLE. THE LAST 2 7 YEARS HAVE BEEN PRIMARILY THROUGH THE ORNAMENTAL AND THE HORTICULTURAL FIELD BECAUSE THE MARKET WAS IN THE L.A. AREA WHERE THE FARM MARKET HAS DISAPPEARED AND TURNED INTO HOMES. SO WE HAD TO CHANGE WITH IT. AND WHENEVER YOU HAUL SEWAGE SLUDGE OR ANY ORGANIC MATERIAL ANY GREAT DISTANCE ------- 55 YOU RUN OUT OF THE -- THE FREIGHT ITSELF BECOMES SO HIGH THAT NO LONGER IS IT ECONOMICAL TO USE IT WHEN YOU GET TO CERTAIN DISTANCES, PLUS NOW WE RECOVER MORE AND MORE SLUDGE ACROSS THE UNITED STATES; THERE IS GOING TO BE SLUDGE IN OTHER PEOPLE'S BACK YARDS THAT THEY ARE GOING TO NEED TO STABILIZE AND COMPOST AND MAKE AVAILABLE. NOW, I DON'T THINK IT IS PARTICULARLY WRONG IN REPEATING SOMETHING THAT SOMEBODY ELSE HAS SAID. I THINK IT SORT OF EMPHASIZES HOW THE SAME PROBLEM EXISTS, NOT ONLY AT THE MARKETING END BUT THE PROCESSING END, AND I I HAD NEVER MET MIKE SELNA IN PERSON I HAVE TALKED TO HIM ON THE PHONE -- BUT I HAD NEVER MET HIM BEFORE, BUT IT IS AMAZING HOW WE HAVE AGREED HERE. NOW, IF YOU REMEMBER A FEW YEARS AGO HOW A NUMBER OF PEOPLE ACROSS THE UNITED STATES OR IF YOU MENTIONED THE WORD "SEWAGE SLUDGE" IT WAS SOMETHING THEY ARE REALLY AFRAID OF. THEY NEVER REALLY RECOGNIZED IT AS A NATURAL RESOURCE, WHICH IT IS. AND NOW, THROUGH GREAT RESEARCH AND STUDY THAT HAS TAKEN PLACE, THEY FOUND OUT IT ISN'T SUCH A BAD THING AFTER ALL; THAT THEY ARE HAVING DIFFICULTY FINDING WHAT IS WRONG WITH SEWAGE SLUDGE WHEN IT IS WELL STABILIZED AND COMPOSTED. THE CADMIUM YOU CAN ------- 56 TAKE CARE OF THE PATHOGENS AND THE ODORS AND THE ESTHETIC VALUES BUT THE CADMIUM IS STILL A QUESTION MARK, AND YET IT STILL HAS NEVER BEEN PROVEN TO BE HARMFUL TO MAN FROM THE USE OF SEWAGE SLUDGE ON CROPS WHERE THEY NEED THEM. ALL OTHER HEAVY METALS AGREED UPON BY THE EXPERTS THAT BEFORE YOU WILL EAT ENOUGH OF THE -- BEFORE YOU CAN APPLY ENOUGH SLUDGE TO THE LAND TO CREATE A TOXICITY IN THE PLANT TO WHERE IT WOULD BE TOXIC TO THE HUMAN, THE PLANT WOULD DIE. SO WE DON'T NEED TO WORRY ABOUT THAT OTHER THAN CADMIUM. WHEN I SAY "WORRY ABOUT IT" I MEAN LOOK AT IT. THE MORE RESEARCH WE DO THE MORE I BELIEVE WE ARE GOING TO FIND OUT IT IS NOT NEAR AS GREAT A CONCERN AS SOME PEOPLE THINK IT IS. SOME PEOPLE ARE STILL FEELING "I HAVE NO PROOF IT'S NOT HARMFUL." SO HOW DO YOU FEEL WITH THAT? I LIKE TO USE THE EXPRESSION "I FEEL MORE NOW THAN I DID WHEN I GOT HERE." SO, ANYWAY. SOME TREAT SLUDGE AS ALL THE SAME, WHICH I THINK IS TOTALLY INCORRECT. WE SHOULD CAREFULLY RECOGNIZE I THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN COMPOST AND WELL STABILIZED SLUDGE AND JUST ANY OLD THING THAT IS ON THE MARKET. LAST WEEK OR TWO WEEKS AGO IN ORLANDO, FLORIDA, ------- 57 A FELLOW GAVE A -- A DR. WEBER FROM NORTH CAROLINA GAVE A TALK ON SLUDGE AND SHOWED HOW THIS CORN CROP WAS GROWING OVER HERE, AND HERE WHERE SLUDGE WAS APPLIED IT WAS STERILE, AND HOW -- I THINK IT WAS $100,000 TO BE GIVEN BACK TO THE FARMER FOR RECOVERY OF HIS LAND, AND IN THE END HE HAD A PICTURE"OF A HONEY WAGON. THEN THE QUESTION CAME UP FROM THE FLOOR "BY THE WAY, WHAT IS THAT, SEWAGE SLUDGE?" AND HE SAYS, "WELL, NO, IT WAS A RESIDUE FROM AN URBAN SITE." BUT HE WAS REFERRING TO IT AS "SLUDGE." NOW, A LOT OF PEOPLE WILL PICK UP AN ARTICLE LIKE THAT AND RUN SCARED. SO WE HAVE TO LOOK AT IT VERY CLOSELY, WHAT THESE CONDEMNATIONS OF SLUDGE ARE. NOW, EPA HAS ASKED FOR COMMENTS ON PROPOSED CRITERIA. NUMBER ONE, AND TWO, THE ADEQUACIES OF CRITERIA IN PROVIDING FOR THE PROTECTION OF PUBLIC HEALTH AND THE ENVIRONMENT. NUMBER TWO IS: THE PRACTICALITY OF IMPLEMENTATION OF THE CRITERIA SUCH AS MONITORING, ADMINISTRATIVE AND ENFORCEMENT PROGRAMS TO ESTABLISH A MINIMUM LEVEL OF PERFORMANCE BASED ON A COMPARISON WITH THE CADMIUM LEVELS OF THE SAME APPROPRIATE SPECIES OR METES PRODUCED ELECTRICALLY FOR SOLID WASTE HAS NOT BEEN APPLIED. THAT IS TOTALLY IMPRACTICAL. IT WOULD ------- 58 CREATE AN ENORMOUS BURDEN ON EVERYONE INVOLVED. AUTHORITIES WOULD USE ONE AREA AS THEIR CRITERIA FOR THE ENTIRE STATE OF CALIFORNIA, WHICH IS A HUGE STATE. SUCH STRANGULATION BY GOVERNMENT AUTHORITIES WOULD DISCOURAGE THE USE OF STABILIZED AND COMPOSTED AND SEWAGE SLUDGE. NOW, MY FEELINGS ARE THAT SEWAGE SLUDGE ARE VERY, VERY, VERY PRONE. I HAVE NEVER SEEN ANYTHING ADVERSE OTHER THAN A FEW AREAS WHERE WE HAD USED RAW SLUDGE TO SEE THE DIFFERENCE. THERE IS A DIFFERENCE IN THE GROWTH OF PLANTS. I THINK MAYBE THERE IS GOING TO HAVE TO BE A COMPROMISE AND IF THERE WAS, FROM THE MARKETING STANDPOINT, OF HOW I THINK POSSIBLY IT WOULD BE DONE ON OUTER LIMITS -- IT WOULD BE -- I'D RATHER SEE RECOMMENDED AMOUNTS OF SLUDGE TO BE USED PER HECTARE BASED ON CADMIUM CONTENT OF THE SLUDGE- YOU COULD USE MORE OF THE LOW CADMIUM SLUDGES THAN THE SLUDGES WITH HIGH CONCENTRATIONS OF CADMIUM. THE SANITATION DISTRICT WOULD KNOW THEIR CONCENTRATIONS OF CADMIUM AND A BILL OF SALE TO THE' FARMER FROM THE BROKER, OR CONTRACTOR, COULD BE SENT TO THE DISTRICT. THE LEACHATE OF THE SOIL SHOULD BE TESTED TO MAKE SURE IT WAS AT LEAST 6.5. IT WOULD TAKE AN EFFORT TO DO IT, BUT I DON'T SEE WHERE IT WOULD BE ------- ANY PROBLEM. IT WOULD CERTAINLY MAKE THE FARMER THINK "WELL, WHY DO I HAVE TO DO THIS," LIKE THIS IS SOMETHING NEGATIVE AS AN OUTSIDE EDGE. I THINK WE COULD LIVE WITH THAT IF WE HAD TO. ANYTHING MORE THAN THAT YOU CAN JUST FORGET THE WHOLE THING. YOU AREN'T GOING TO GET A FARMER TO APPLY SEWAGE SLUDGE TO HIS LAND, PARTICULARLY IN CALIFORNIA, SAY, A GUY WHO OWNS A GOLF COURSE, AND EVEN THOUGH YOUR REGULATIONS DON'T HAVE THIS AS MIKE KIADO DOES RIGHT NOW AT LEAST THE FIRST PART OF IT -- YOU HAVE TO PLOW TWO FOOT DEEPER OR BRING IN TWO FOOT LANDFILL. NO FARMER IS EVER GOING TO DO IT. ABSOLUTELY, TOTALLY IMPRACTICAL. IT'S JUST UNNECESSARY AS FAR AS I'M CONCERNED. THERE IS NO NEED TO WAIT I PUT DOWN "THERE IS NO NEED TO WAIT ONE YEAR BEFORE PLANTING CROPS OR STABILIZING COMPOSTED SLUDGE. IF IT IS USED PROPERLY THIS WOULD DEFINITELY DISCOURAGE THE USE OF QUALITY SITES." IF YOU WANT TO PLANT SOMETHING WITH GOOD, COMPOSTED SEWAGE SLUDGE, YOU CAN DO IT IMMEDIATELY. WE NEED A POSITIVE APPROACH, NOT A NEGATIVE ONE. IF YOU ARE GOING TO HAVE LIMITS, THEN INSTEAD OF SAYING "YOU CANNOT USE MORE THAN 'X' TONS PER HECTARE," SAY, "YOU CAN UP TO 'X' TONS PER HECTARE." YOU ARE ------- 60 SAYING THE SAME THING BUT YOU ARE RECOMMENDING THE USE OF IT RATHER THAN SAYING "DON'T USE IT." THERE IS A LAW ON THE BOOKS IN WASHINGTON, D.C. THAT WAS INITIATED DURING WORLD WAR II WHERE CERTAIN CONTRACTORS ARE REQUIRED TO USE CADMIUM ON STEEL, ET CETERA. I HAVE TALKED -- AND A NUMBER OF PEOPLE HERE HAVE TALKED TO PEOPLE IN THE METALLURGY ASSOCIATION IN THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA AND ASKED THEM "WELL, IF YOU COULD USE ZINC OR HAD TO USE ZINC," THEY SAID, IN MANY INSTANCES, "THAT WOULD BE FINE." AND THERE IS A ZINC DEFICIENCY IN OUR DIET. BUT IF WE JUST CHANGED THAT LAW TO WHERE INSTEAD OF SAYING "YOU HAVE TO USE IT," SAYING "IF YOU ARE GOING TO USE IT THEN YOU REGISTER "WELL, YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE, WHERE YOU ARE " AND THEN THAT WILL REALLY HELP ON THE MONITORING THING. A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT ARE USING CADMIUM TODAY BECAUSE THEY HAVE TO BY LAW, WOULDN'T, AND THOSE THAT DID NEED TO USE IT, THEY'D GO RIGHT AHEAD AND USE IT AND THEY'D BE MONITORED AND THEIR RESIDUE MIGHT HAVE TO BE KEPT SEPARATE AND HAULED OFF TO THE LANDFILL SO WE CAN KEEP TRACK OF WHERE THE;Y ARE, AND THEY WOULDN'T MIND. WHAT THEY WOULD DO ON CASES WHERE CADMIUM-COATED STEEL IS BEING USED, THEY WOULD UP THEIR PRICES. ------- THEY'D COVER IT. IN THE MEANTIME YOU KEEP A LOT OF CADMIUM OUT OF THE SEWERAGE. EXCESSIVE GOVERNMENT REGULATIONS ARE HARD TO REVERSE -- SORT OF THE ANDREA DORIA STORY, IT TAKES THREE MILES TO STOP AND THEY ONLY HAD A HALF MILE TO DO IT. IT'S AT THE BOTTOM OF THE ATLANTIC OCEAN NOW. JUST LIKE IN LOS ANGELES BEFORE THAT LAST BIG STORM, THEY WERE SEEDING CLOUDS SEVEN HOURS BEFORE THE WORST STORM HIT LOS ANGELES, AND NOW THE RESERVOIRS ARE ALREADY FULL. YOU REALIZE WE ARE CONCERNED THAT THERE IS NO REASONABLE PROBABILITY OF ADVERSE EFFECT ON THE HEALTH AND TO THE ENVIRONMENT. WELL, AS DR. WALKER STATED AT THE CALIFORNIA CHAPTER OF AGRONOMY IN FRESNO, HE SAYS, "REALLY, DO YOU REALIZE WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT?" HE SAYS, "WHAT WE'RE REALLY TALKING ABOUT AS FAR AS CADMIUM TO THE HEALTH OF MAN AND HOW IT WOULD BE DETRIMENTAL IS IF YOU HAD'THE DR. WALKER IS WITH PHA, HE WAS WITH WATER, HE WAS WITH HEALTH BEFORE SAID, "IF YOU HAD A PATCH OF SOIL AND YOU GREW LEAFY VEGETABLES, ROOT CROPS, AND THAT WAS YOUR ENTIRE DIET FOR 55 YEARS AND THAT IS ALL YOU ATE, THERE IS A POSSIBILITY IT MIGHT BE DETRIMENTAL TO YOUR HEALTH." NOW, FIRST OF ALL, THAT IS NEVER GOING TO HAPPEN. ,OKAY. ------- 62 WELL, IN CLOSING I JUST SAY THAT WELL-COMPOSTED, STABILIZED SLUDGE IS A NATURAL RESOURCE. AND THERE IS A REPLACEMENT FOR IT. AND THERE ISN'T TOO MUCH OF IT. IF WE USED ALL OF IT WE COULDN'T COVER ONE PERCENT OF OUR FARMLANDS IN THE UNITED STATES. DR. SKINNER: THANK YOU. ANY QUESTIONS? MR. DE GEARE.* I HAVE JUST A FEW, I THINK YOU SUGGESTED AN APPLICATION CONTROL BASED ON SLUDGE CADMIUM CONCENTRATION; IS THAT CORRECT? MR. KELLOGG: AS RAISED AS OPPOSED -- MR. DE GEARE: FOR FARMERS. MR. KELLOGG: YES, BUT I DON'T KNOW WHAT THOSE FIGURES ARE. I DON'T KNOW WHO KNOWS WHAT THOSE FIGURES WOULD BE. I'M SAYING THAT YOU COULD MARKET IT ON THAT BASIS AND DO IT SUCCESSFULLY AND GO OUT WITH A POSITIVE ATTITUDE. MR. DE GEARE: YOU ARE SPEAKING OF A CONCEPT PREFERABLE TO WHAT? MR. KELLOGG: BEING PREFERABLE TO THE NUMBER TWO IN YOUR LIST WHERE IT SAID THAT TO ESTABLISH A MINIMUM LEVEL OF PERFORMANCE BASED ON COMPARISON! WITH THE CADMIUM LEVEL IS OF ONE PIECE OF GROUND AND THEN FIRST THING YOU KNOW TELL US THAT ALL OVER CALIFORNIA, AND IT ------- 63 REALLY DOESN'T MAKE SENSE. MAYBE IT WOULD IN SALINAS ONLY BUT THAT'S ONLY A FEW MILES. DR. SKINNER: I AM NOT SURE IF I UNDERSTAND YOUR POINT. THE ITEM -- THE FIRST APPROACH TOWARDS DEALING WITH CADMIUM IS BASED UPON A CERTAIN APPLICATION RATE IN TERMS OF KILOGRAMS PER HECTARE OF CADMIUM. NOW, THAT IS TRANSLATABLE INTO CERTAIN TONS PER HECTARE OF SLUDGE IF YOU KNEW THE CADMIUM CONTENT. ARE YOU SAYING THAT THAT IS A PREFERABLE APPROACH? MR. KELLOGG: NO. I'M SAYING FIRST OF ALL, I WISH THERE WASN'T ANY AT ALL. BUT IF YOU HAD TO USE THE APPROACH TO WHERE YOU COULD APPLY SLUDGE ON LAND ONLY WHERE IT DOESN'T SHOW AN INCREASE OVER THE LOCAL CADMIUM CONTENT, IT WOULD BE TOTALLY IMPRACTICAL AND IMPOSSIBLE TO GOVERN AND YOU'D HAVE A HEADACHE ON YOU JUST AS WELL HAUL IT ON A LANDFILL. NO WAY YOU CAN TOUCH IT. DR. SKINNER: I HAVE ONE OTHER QUESTION. WHEN YOU STARTED YOUR STATEMENT YOU INDICATED THAT THE CURRENT MARKET IS MAINLY ORNAMENTALS. MR. KELLOGG: FOR OUR COMPANY. ORNAMENTALS, GOLF COURSES, SCHOOLS, CEMETARIES. IF YOU LIKE THE WAY LOS ANGELES IS LAID OUT YOU CAN SEE IT HAS NITROGEN USE. ------- 64 DR. SKINNER: SO THE COMPOSTED SLUDGE THAT YOU ARE DEALING WITH IS NOT FOR AGRICULTURAL USAGE PRIMARILY? MR. KELLOGG: IF SOMEBODY WANTED TO BUY IT. BUT WE HAVE HAD IT ON ALLOCATION FOR THE LAST THREE YEARS. L. A. COUNTY WAS PRODUCING 30, 000 TONS A YEAR AND WE WERE SELLING 50. AND SO WHEN OUR INVENTORY WENT DOWN I HAD TO PUT IT ON ALLOCATION FOR THREE YEARS AND CUT IT ALL, EVEN TO THE GOLF COURSES. DR. SKINNER: SO ALL YOUR MARKET IS GOING TO ORNAMENTAL USES? MR. KELLOGG: CURRENTLY, UNTIL WE -- OH, WE USED IT IN ORANGE GROVES FOR A YEAR AND HAD A LOT OF ADVANTAGES OVER OTHER ORGANIC MATERIALS. THERE ARE A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT DON'T KNOW THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN HORSE MANURE AND SEWERAGE SLUDGE. AND IT'S JUST -- AND YET THEY SPEAK OF BOTH OF THEM AS BEING THE SAME AND YOU KNOW THEY ABSOLUTELY ARE NOT. DR. SKINNER: YES. BUT THE POINT -- FOR CLARIFICATION, I GUESS YOU'RE AWARE THAT THE CADMIUM RESTRICTIONS IN THE CRITERIA ONLY APPLY TO FOOD CHAIN CROP USES AND WOULD NOT APPLY TO ORNAMENTAL OR LAWN USES. MR. KELLOGG: WELL, I KNOW THAT IS THE SUBJECT ------- 65 OF THIS MEETING -- DR. skinner: YES. MR. KELLOGG: ~ BUT I KNOW WHAT THE SUBJECT IS GOING TO BE FOR THE MATTER NEXT ON HAND OF BAG PRODUCTS WE SELL. DR. SKINNER: I UNDERSTAND THAT. I GUESS I WAS JUST CONCERNED THAT YOUR COMMENTS WERE NOT BEING MADE WITH RESPECT TO THE ORNAMENTAL MARKET. MR. KELLOGG: WELL, MY COMMENTS WERE BEING DIRECTED INTO THE AGRICULTURE MARKET -- DR. SKINNER: I SEE. MR. KELLOGG: -- VERY MUCH, BECAUSE THERE ARE AREAS THAT MAYBE WE WILL MOVE INTO IN OTHER PARTS OF THE UNITED STATES AND WORK THE SANITATION DISTRICTS, AND THAT MIGHT BE OUR NUMBER ONE MARKET, WILL BE THE FARM MARKET. DR. SKINNER: I SEE. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? THANK YOU. THAT COMPLETES EVERYONE WHO HAS REGISTERED AND INDICATED THEY WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A STATEMENT. IS THERE ANYONE WHO I HAVE NOT COVERED THAT REGISTERED WHO WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A FORMAL STATEMENT? ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS FROM THE AUDIENCE? WERE THE CARDS PASSED OUT? ------- 66 CVOICE ANSWERED IN THE AFFIRMATIVE.) DR. SKINNER: IF THERE ARE ANY QUESTIONS FROM THE AUDIENCE YOU CAN PASS THE CARDS TOWARD THE CENTER. OKAY, I HAI7E ONE QUESTION. IF THERE ARE ANY OTHERS, PASS THEM FORWARD. THE QUESTION IS "WHAT DOES EPA EXPECT TO HAPPEN TO SLUDGE IF Cl) DISCHARGE TO WATER IS PROHIBITED; AND (2) DISCHARGE TO AIR IS NOT PERMITTED; AND (3) LAND APPLICATION IS PRECLUDED; AND CO TECHNOLOGY IS NOT ON LINE TO DE-WATER SLUDGE GREATER THAN 30 PERCENT SOLIDS." I WILL ANSWER THAT ONE. OBVIOUSLY, THAT IS AN IMPOSSIBLE SITUATION. THAT IS NOT THE INTENT. WITH RESPECT TO THE CURRENT REGULATION, THE INTENT IS NOT TO PRECLUDE THE USE OF SLUDGE ON AGRICULTURAL LAND BUT IS TO PROVIDE PROTECTION WHEN THAT SLUDGE IS USED ON AGRICULTURAL LAND AND OTHER LAND USES, AND THE REGULATION WAS DEVELOPED IN ITS CURRENT FORM -- AND WE ARE VERY INTERESTED IN COMMENTS ON ITS ADEQUACY AND ITS IMPACT AND OBVIOUSLY WE COULD NOT ALLOW A SITUATION TO OCCUR WHERE ALL FOUR OF THESE SITUATIONS DID EXIST. ARE THERE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? MR. SELNA: I HAVE A QUESTION. CAN I MAKE IT ------- 67 VERBALLY? DR. SKINNER: YES. MR. SELNA: WOULD IT INVOLVE AN INORDINATE AMOUNT OF PAPER TO DELINEATE THE METHOD USED IN DERIVING THE NUMERICAL REGULATIONS FOR CADMIUM? IN OTHER WORDS, COULD YOU APPEND TO YOUR REGULATIONS THE METHOD THAT COULD BE USED TO ARRIVE AT THOSE NUMBERS? DR. SKINNER: YES. THEY WILL BE IN THE EIS, AND BASICALLY THEY ARE BASED UPON SEVERAL THINGS. THEY ARE BASED UPON FDA RECOMMENDATIONS. IN FACT, THE ACTUAL PROPOSED LEVELS ARE LESS STRINGENT THAN THE RECOMMENDATION MADE BY FDA. WE ARE ASKING FOR FDA COMMENTS ON THE PROPOSAL THAT WE MADE, AND THEY ARE 'A', BASED UPON OUR OBSERVATION OF THE CADMIUM LEVELS IN VARIOUS SLUDGES AND VARIOUS COMMUNITIES AROUND THE NATION, AND AN ESTIMATE OF WHETHER OR NOT THEY WOULD BE ABLE, TO COMPLY WITH THOSE LEVELS, AND WHEN THEY WOULD BE ABLE TO COMPLY WITH THEM. BUT THAT WILL BE COVERED IN THE EIS. MR. GARVIN: JOHN, HAVE YOU ALREADY INDICATED THAT EIS WILL BE AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC AND WHERE THEY MAY OBTAIN A COPY? DR. SKINNER: YES, THE EIS WILL BE AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC AT THE END OF THIS MONTH. IT WILL BE ------- 68 ADVERTISED -- OR ANNOUNCED IN THE FEDERAL REGISTER AND THE FEDERAL REGISTER WILL INDICATE WHERE YOU APPLY FOR A COPY, AND THEN THERE WILL BE A 45-DAY COMMENT PERIOD ON THAT. ANOTHER QUESTION -- ACTUALLY IT'S THREE PARTS. THE FIRST PART IS "LIMITS FOR CADMIUM ARE EXPRESSED IN TERMS OF KILOGRAMS PER HECTARE. DOES THIS RELATE TO A SURFACE APPLICATION OR IS IT BASED UPON THE WEIGHT OF A VOLUME OF SOIL." IT'S KILOGRAMS OF CADMIUM IN THE SLUDGE PER HECTARE OF LAND. MR. PAGE: -YOUR LIMITS ARE BASED ON A MAXIMUM APPLICATION -- DR. SKINNER: I'M SORRY, I CAN'T HEAR THE QUESTION. MR. PAGE: YOUR LIMITS FOR CADMIUM ARE BASED UPON A MAXIMUM APPLICATION TO LAND ANNUALLY AND THEN OVER THE LIFETIME OF THE PROJECT. DOES THIS REFER TO A SURFACE APPLICATION OR DOES IT REFER TO THE WEIGHT OF THE VOLUME OF SOIL? ALBERT L. PAGE, UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, RIVERSIDE. DR. SKINNER: IT RELATES TO SURFACE APPLICATION. MR. PAGE: THAT IS NOT CLEAR IN THE REGULATIONS. DR. SKINNER: THANK YOU. ------- 69 MR. page: THAT MAKES IT MORE RESTRICTIVE, INCIDENTALLY. DR. SKINNER: LET ME FINISH THESE OTHER TWO QUESTIONS AND THEN I WOULD APPRECIATE IT IF YOU HAVE YOUR QUESTION IN WRITING IF YOU HAVE ANOTHER QUESTION. IT SAYS "IF THE LIMITS REFER TO THE WEIGHT OF A VOLUME OF SOIL, CAN ONE TILL TO GREATER DEPTHS TO DILUTE APPLICATION RATES?" THAT DOES NOT APPLY TO VOLUME OF SOIL. THE THIRD QUESTION IS "IN TERMS OF NON-AGRICULTURAL USE H3W DOES EPA PROPOSE TO INSURE THAT AT SOME FUTURE POINT IN TIME THIS LAND WILL NOT BE USED FOR FOOD CROPS?" THE REGULATION DOES NOT ADDRESS THAT ISSUE AT ALL AND I DON'T HAVE A PROPOSAL FOR THAT. ANOTHER QUESTION IS: "WILL YOU DEVELOP A MAILING LIST FOR THE EIS? IF SO, WHO CAN WE WRITE TO NOW TO GET ON THAT LIST WITHOUT WAITING UNTIL THE END OF THE MONTH?" WRITE TO THE ADDRESS THE ADDRESS IS AT THE REGISTRATION DESK. ADDRESS IT TO MR. SHUSTER AND HIS MAILING ADDRESS IS AT THE REGISTRATION DESK. WE WILL PUT YOU ON THE MAILING LIST FOR EIS. OKAY, A NUMBER OF QUESTIONS. "DO WE HAVE ANY FEELING FOR THE STATES' ABILITY TO CARRY OUT THE OPEN ------- 70 DUMP INVENTORY IN ONE YEAR AS REQUIRED UNDER RCRA?" TRUETT, WOULD YOU LIKE TO RESPOND TO THAT? MR. DE GEARE: OUR FEELING NOW IS THAT IT WILL NOT BE POSSIBLE TO COMPLETE THE INVENTORY IN ONE YEAR'S TIME PERIOD. THE STATUTE DID SAY THAT THE INVENTORY WOULD BE PUBLISHED BY EPA ONE YEAR AFTER FINALIZATION OF THE REGULATION THAT WE ARE PRESENTLY DISCUSSING. AFTER COMING THIS FAR IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE REGULATION IT IS APPARENT TO US THAT THE COMPLEXITIES AND COSTS INVOLVED IN EVALUATING DISPOSAL FACILITIES AGAINST CRITERIA OF THIS NATURE WOULD PRECLUDE THE POSSIBILITY OF BEING TIME-SCHEDULED. SO WE WOULD ENVISION A TIME PHASING OF THE INVENTORY EVALUATION PROCESS WITH THE FIRST PHASE FIRST INSTALLMENT OF THE INVENTORY BEING PUBLISHED ONE YEAR AFTER FINALIZATION OF THIS REGULATION, AND SUBSEQUENT PHASES OR INSTALLMENTS BEING PUBLISHED EVERY YEAR THEREAFTER. DR. SKINNER: THEY ARE ACTUALLY -- I THINK YOU ADDRESSED THAT TO THE OTHER TWO PARTS. "WILL THERE BE EXTENSIONS AS REQUIRED?" AND "HOW WILL THE EXTENSIONS BE GRANTED?" THOSE EXTENSIONS WILL BE GRANTED THROUGH THE STATE GRANT PROGRAM. ------- 71 THE DATE OF THE PORTLAND HEARING. THERE IS A QUESTION ON THAT. 26TH OF APRIL. "WILL THERE BE ANOTHER PUBLIC HEARING ON THE £1 WEST COAST AFTER ISSUANCE OF THE *S?" YES, THE PORTLAND HEARING WILL COVER BOTH THE EIS AND THE CRITERIA AS WILL THE REMAINING THREE ^ HEARINGS. YES, TWO QUESTIONS. NUMBER ONE, "COULD THE TOXI COLOG ICAL BASIS FOR THE CADMIUM LOADING RESTRICTIONS BE INCLUDED AS A PREAMBLE IN THE REGULATION IN ORDER TO ESTABLISH THE CREDIBILITY OF THE BASIS FOR THE PROPOSED RESTRICTIONS?" AND THE SECOND PART TO THAT "HAS AN ESTIMATE BEEN MADE AS TO THE PERCENTAGE OF TOTAL U.S.A. MUNICIPAL SLUDGE PRODUCTION WHICH WOULD BE DISQUALIFIED FROM APPLICATION AT THE 0.5 KILOGRAM PER HECTARE LEVEL TODAY?" WITH RESPECT TO THE FIRST PART OF THAT QUESTION, THE PREAMBLE TO THE EIS DID INDICATE THAT WE DID BASE OUR CADMIUM LOADING RESTRICTIONS ON RECOMMENDATIONS FROM FDA, AND ALSO AN ESTIMATE OF WHAT THE IMPACT ON CURRENT PRACTICES WOULD BE, AND ALSO AN ESTIMATE OF WHAT PRE-TREATMENT WOULD BE AVAILABLE TO ACCOMPLISH IN ORDER TO BRING CURRENT CADMIUM LEVELS IN THE SLUDGE DOWN TO TME EFFECTIVENESS OF PRE-TREATMENT IN ------- 72 REDUCING CADMIUM LEVELS IN THE SLUDGE. MORE INFORMATION ON THAT WILL BE INCLUDED IN THE EI S, AS WILL AN ESTIMATE OF THE PERCENTAGE OF MUNICIPAL SLUDGE PRODUCTION WHICH WOULD BE DISQUALIFIED FROM APPLICATION AT THE .5 PER KILOGRAM PER HECTARE NUMBER TODAY. I DON'T HAVE THAT NUMBER RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME, BUT WE DO HAVE AN ESTIMATE OF THAT AVAILABLE. DR. COHEN: JOHN, I BELIEVE YOU STATED THAT WAS DISCUSSED AT THE PREAMBLE TO THE EIS. DR. SKINNER: IN THE PREAMBLE TO THE REGULATION. IT EXPLAINS IN GENERAL TERMS THE BASIS FOR THE LEVEL. DR. COHEN: CRITERIA? DR. SKINNER: THE LEVEL CONTROL. DR. COHEN: EXCUSE ME, I WROTE THAT QUESTION. THERE ARE SEVERAL METABOLIC MODELS THAT ARE FLOATING AROUND BEING QUOTED. CAN YOU SPECIFICALLY, OR CAN IT BE STATED WHICH ONE IS THE CRITERIA THAT EPA IS USING? DR. SKINNER: I CANNOT, NO. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO LEAVE YOUR NAME I THINK WE WOULD GET BACK TO YOU ON THAT. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? MR, GARVIN: SOMEONE GAVE ME A QUESTION THAT IS "WHAT LIABILITY WILL EPA OR LOCAL AGENCIES HAVE FOR LAND WHICH MAY POTENTIALLY BE CONTAMINATED BY CADMIUM ------- 73 OR PATHOGENS?" GENERALLY, THERE WOULD BE NO LIABILITY FOR REGULATORY AGENCIES, EPA AND STATE AGENCIES. AND AS LONG AS THE MUNICIPAL AGENCIES SELLING THE SLUDGE WERE COMPLYING WITH THE STANDARDS THAT EPA HAS PROMULGATED, IF EPA DOES, IN FACT, PROMULGATE A CADMIUM STANDARD, THERE WOULD BE -- IT WOULD BE EXTREMELY DIFFICULT TO PROVE LIABILITY OR ESTABLISH LIABILITY ON THE PART OF THAT MUNICIPAL AGENCY BECAUSE AS LONG AS AN INDIVIDUAL OR ENTITY IS COMPLYING WITH PROMULGATED REGULATIONS THAT IS ALL THAT IS NECESSARY TO MEET THE REASONABLE MAN TEST THAT IS ESTABLISHED GENERALLY IN TORT LAW. SO I DON'T THINK THERE WOULD BE MUCH LIKELIHOOD OF A SUCCESSFUL CASE HOLDING A MUNICIPAL AGENCY LIABLE. DR. SKINNER: THIS IS A QUESTION THAT, KEN, PERHAPS YOU CAN ANSWER. "WILL UN-LINED INDUSTRIAL WASTE PONDS BE CLASSIFIED AS OPEN DUMPS? IF YES, WILL EPA/STATE COMPLIANCE SCHEDULES ALLOW THEIR EXISTENCE, IF THE SCHEDULE IS MET?" MR. SHUSTER: OKAY. THE CRITERIA DOES APPLY TO INDUSTRIAL LAGOONS AND PONDS. THE GROUNDWATER CRITERION ALLOWS FOR TWO OPERATIONAL METHODS. ONE IS UNfiR, THE OTHER IS THE UTILIZATION OF ATTENUATION MECHANISMS. AND THE BASIC ------- 7k PERFORMANCE THAT HAS TO BE MET IS THAT YOU DON'T ENDANGER THE GROUNQWflTfcP. BEYOND THE PROPERTY BOUNDARY. ENDANGERMENT IS CONTAMINATION TO THE EXTENT THAT A GROUNDWATER USER, IF IT IS USED FOR DRINKING WATER, WOULD HAVE TO TREAT THE GROUNDWATER TO USE IT OR THE GROUNDWATER WOULD BE RENDERED UNFIT FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION. ANOTHER ALTERNATIVE IS IN THE SECOND CASE IN THE GROUNDWATER CRITERION, IS THAT IF IT IS NON- DRINKING WATER THE STATE CAN DESIGNATE OTHER USE BESIDES DRINKING WATER AND SET A DIFFERENT STANDARD IF IT CAN BE ACHIEVED. DR. SKINNER: THANK YOU. ANOTHER QUESTION IS "WILL THE EIS COVER THE COSTS OF PRE-TREATMENT TO ACHIEVE REQUIRED CADMIUM LEVELS, AND COMPARE SUCH COSTS TO THE BENEFITS TO BE DERIVED UNDER THE REGULATIONS?" IT WILL NOT. THE EIS WILL NOT COVER THE COSTS OF PRE-TREATMENT TO ACHIEVE REQUIRED CADMIUM LEVELS, BECAUSE THE CRITERIA DO NOT SET STANDARDS FOR PRE-TREATMENT. THERE ARE PRE-TREATMENT REGULATIONS BEING DEVELOPED 8Y THE AGENCY AND THOSE REGULATIONS SHOULD CONSIDER THE COSTS OF PRE-TREATMENT. THE EIS WILL MAKE ESTIMATES OF THE COSTS OF COMPLYING WITH THE CRITERIA FOR ALL ASPECTS OF THE ------- 75 CRITERIA INCLUDING THOSE DEALING WITH CADMIUM APPLICATION. BUT ESTIMATE OF THE DOLLAR VALUE OF THE BENEFITS IS VERY, VERY DIFFICULT AND WAS NOT DONE IN THE EIS EXCEPT IN A FEW SPECIAL CASES WHERE THERE WAS SOME INFORMATION. BUT THERE WILL NOT BE ESTIMATES OF THE DOLLAR BENEFITS WITH RESPECT TO CADMIUM. DR. SKINNER: THERE IS A QUESTION WOULD I PLEASE ASK OF THOSE IN ATTENDANCE HOW MANY ARE INTERESTED CITIZENS RATHER THAN REGULATORY AGENCY OR SPECIAL INTEREST PERSONS. HOW MANY ARE INTERESTED CITIZENS RATHER THAN REGULATORY AGENCIES OR SPECIAL INTEREST PERSONS? I SEE TWO HANDS. MR. MNOIAN: COULD I SAY SOMETHING, JOHN, PLEASE? DR. SKINNER: YES. MR. MNOIAN: PAUL MNOIAN, M-N-O-I-A-N, PRIVATE DUMP OPERATOR. YOU KNOW, I HAVEN'T HAD THE PRIVILEGE OF READING THE CRITERIA THAT YOU HAVE WRITTEN, BUT I HAVE READ A LOT OF OTHER REGULATIONS THAT HAVE COME FROM THE AGENCIES, THE WATER QUALITY AND OTHERS, OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS, AND I FIND THAT THE INTERPRETATION, WHEN IT FINALLY GETS DOWN TO THE DUMP SITE ITSELF, THE ------- 76 PEOPLE THAT ARE INTERPRETING THE CONDITIONS THAT YOUR AGENCY IS WRITING AND OTHERS, IS ALTOGETHER DIFFERENT, AND THERE IS TOO MANY DUAL STANDARDS. THEY WILL LET CERTAIN OPERATORS GET AWAY WITH CERTAIN CONDITIONS AND OTHERS THAT ARE IN THE SAME FIELD NOT GET AWAY WITH THEM. FOR INSTANCE, SOME OF THE REGULATIONS LIKE CLASS III DUMP SITES, OR THE PORTER-COLOGNE WATER AUTHORITY SAYS THAT YOU CAN HAVE MINOR AMOUNTS OF WOOD IN A CLASS III DUMP SITE. OTHER AGENCIES FURTHER DOWN IN THE WATER QUALITY IN THIS AREA SAY "NO, YOU CAN'T HAVE ANY." BUT OTHER DUMP SITES THAT ARE IN OTHER LOCATIONS -- THEIR INSPECTORS ARE INTERPRETING IT ACCORDING TO THE PORTER-COLOGNE WATER AUTHORITY. NOW, THERE WILL BE SOMEBODY FOR THE PROTECTION OF THE PEOPLE IN THE BUSINESS THAT ARE TAKING THIS MATERIAL EVERY DAY, DISPOSING OF IT, SO THAT THE PUBLIC CAN OPERATE -- THERE SHOULD BE SOME GRANDFATHER CLAUSE OR AGENCY THAT CAN SUPERSEDE SOME OF THE SMALLER AGENCIES DOWN THE LINE THAT ARE DOING THIS INTERPRETING. THE REGULATIONS, LIKE WHAT YOU'RE READING TONIGHT, ACTUALLY CREATE AN ENVIRONMENTAL BOGEYMAN IN THE MINDS OF THE PUBLIC, THEY JUST GET SCARED THE MINUTE THEY HEAR THE WORD "TOXIC"; THEY JUST CLAM UP, ------- 77 THEY DON'T WANT A SITE HERE, THEY DON'T WANT ONE WITHIN 20 MILES OF WHERE THEY LIVE. AND SO I THINK, IF YOU'RE GOING TO COME UP WITH THESE NEW REGULATIONS -- AND I THINK THAT THERE NEEDS TO BE SOME ORDER AND GUIDELINES, BECAUSE THERE ARE CHEMICALS AND MATERIALS THAT ARE COMING OUT THAT ARE DANGEROUS. FOR INSTANCE, SOME MATERIAL YOU CAN HANDLE SAFELY BUT ONCE THEY GET INVOLVED IN A FIRE THEY GIVE OFF POISONOUS SMOKE OR ODOR, AND THEY SHOULD BE GUARDED. FOR INSTANCE, ASBESTOS. OVER THE PAST 50 YEARS IN THIS AREA AND THE AREA THAT I HAVE BEEN INVOLVED IN, RUBBISH PICKING UP IN LOS ANGELES COUNTY, AND MY COMPANY ALONE HAS HANDLED APPROXIMATELY THREE AND A HALF MILLION TONS OF RUBBISH IN THE PAST ttO YEARS AND HAS DISPOSED OF IT, WE HAVE HANDLED ALL SORTS OF TOXIC MATERIALS: PAINTS, THINNERS, ACIDS, RUBBISH, GARBAGE -- GARBAGE IS ONE OF THE WORST AND NO ONE HAS DIED FROM HANDLING ANY OF THIS MATERIAL. THEY HAVE BEEN RUN OVER BY A TRUCK OR FALLEN OFF THE TRUCK, BUT THEY HAVEN'T DIED FROM IT. I KNOW YOU GENTLEMEN UP THERE LOOK PRETTY YOUNG TO ME, AND I DON'T BELIEVE YOU HAVE EVER WORKED ON A SANITARY-VIC-TANNEY-RUBBISH TRUCK, AND I HOPE YOU NEVER DO, BUT IT WON'T KILL YOU, WON'T HURT YOU, AND WHAT I'M TRYING TO SAY IS THAT THESE MATERIALS ARE BEING ------- PRODUCED ALL THE TIME IN THE COMMUNITY AND THEY HAVE TO BE HAULED TO A PLACE, AND IN THIS PARTICULAR AREA ON THE WEST COAST THE SANITARY LANDFILL -- IT'S REALLY MOST PROMISING, AND THE MOST LONG LIVED, AND THE ONE THAT HAS THE MOST HISTORY, THE LONGEST HISTORY OF ITS OPERATION. IT WORKS OUT. BUT WE JUST CAN'T HAVE REGULATIONS THAT ARE SCARING THE PUBLIC IN WHICH PRIVATE ENTERPRISE WILL LOOK FOR A SITE, WILL MEET THE CRITERIA OF THE STATE, PASS ALL OF THOSE, DO ALL THE GEOLOGY. AND YET SOME PEOPLE CAN COME UP TO THE PLANNING COMMISSION HERE, GO TO A COUNCIL HEARING, AND SAY "OKAY, WE KNOW IT PASSES ALL OF THIS, ALL THE REQUIREMENTS, THE ZONE IS CORRECT, BUT PUT JT SOMEWHERE ELSE." IT IS GOING TO GO SOME PLACE AND IT CAN'T GO TOO FAR AWAY FROM THE COMMUNITY. AND SO ALONG WITH THESE REGULATIONS YOU SHOULD ALSO STIPULATE THAT THERE HAS TO BE A SITE THAT THE PUBLIC CAN -- VERY CLOSE BY -- THAT IS NOT DANGEROUS, THEIR CHILDREN WON'T FALL IN IT AND DIE. THIS IS ALL I'M ASKING, BECAUSE WE ARE GOING TO NEED THESE SITES FOR A LONG TIME. DR. SKINNER: THANK YOU. LET ME ASSURE YOU THAT IT IS NOT THE INTENTION OF THE REGULATIONS TO ------- 79 PRECLUDE THE USE OF DISPOSAL OPERATIONS AND RESTRICT THE USE OF THE DISPOSAL OPERATION, BUT INSURE THOSE DISPOSAL OPERATIONS ARE OPERATED IN A WAY THAT PROVIDES PROTECTION OF THE ENVIRONMENT. I THINK WE DEFINITELY" RECOGNIZE THAT DISPOSAL IS A NECESSARY SERVICE AND NEEDS TO BE PROVIDED FOR THE FUTURE. MR. MNOIAN: THANK YOU. DR. SKINNER: THANK YOU. LET ME RESPOND TO A QUESTION THAT WAS RAISED OVER HERE WHICH I DON'T THINK I ANSWERED ADEQUATELY. WITH RESPECT TO THE BASIS OF CADMIUM LOADING RESTRICTIONS THERE WAS A QUESTION AS TO WHAT MODEL WE USED. THE BASIS FOR THE CADMIUM LOADING RESTRICTIONS COMES FROM A POLICY POSITION TO THE AGENCY AS ADOPTED BASED UPON RECOMMENDATIONS FROM FDA THAT FUTURE INCREASES TO THE DIET OF CADMIUM BE PREVENTED. THE ACTUAL CADMIUM NUMBERS THAT WERE DERIVED WERE BASED UPON A REVIEW OF DATA WHICH SHOWED FOR. VARIOUS CROPS, VARIOUS SPECIES, LEAVES, LEAF VERSUS CORN -- GRAIN -- WHAT THE INCREMENTS OF CADMIUM WOULD BE BASED UPON;CONTROL OF THE PH, AND THE ACTUAL ANNUAL CADMIUM APPLICATION RATE. THE DATA IS VERY SCATTERED AND IT SHOWED THAT IN ------- 80 SOME CASES YOU ACTUALLY COULD -- YOU COULD EXCEED THESE APPLICATION RATES AND NOT PRODUCE SIGNIFICANT INCREASES, WHILE IN OTHER CASES APPLICATION RATES EVEN BELOW THE RECOMMENDED RATES IN THE INCREASES WERE SEVERALFOLD. AND THAT FORMS THE BASIS FOR THE SECOND PART OF THE CRITERIA WHICH ALLOWS A CASE-BY-CASE DETERMINATION BASED UPON CROP MONITORING. THAT IS THE POLICY THAT THE CRITERIA TRIED TO -- ARE BASED UPON. THEY ARE NOT BASED UPON A MODELING OF THE UPTAKE OF HUMANS AND THE INCREASE IN CADMIUM LEVELS IN ANY PART OF THE BODY BASED UPON CERTAIN CONSUMPTION LEVELS BUT BASED UPON POLICY POSITION THAT FDA HAS ADOPTED THAT FUTURE INCREASES BE PREVENTED. NEXT QUESTION, "PLEASE PROVIDE A COPY OF THE SAN DIEGO HEARING TRANSCRIPT. IF THERE IS A CHARGE PLEASE ADVISE." THERE WILL BE A COPY AVAILABLE IN THE DOCKET, AND I THINK WE CAN PROVIDE COPIES AVAILABLE AT A CHARGE AND WE WILL GET BACK TO THIS PERSON AND MAKE ARRANGEMENTS FOR THAT. YES? DR. COHEN: I HAVE A QUESTION. HAS EPA ACTUALLY CONSIDERED THE PROHIBITION OF CADMIUM IN CONSUMER AND INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTS? ------- 81 DR. SKINNER: I'M SORRY, I CANNOT HEAR THE QUESTION. SPEAK LOUDER. DR. COHEN: HAS THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY CONSIDERED PROHIBITING CADMIUM IN CONSUMER AND INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTS, AND IF NOT, WHY NOT? DR. SKINNER: WE DO NOT HAVE THE AUTHORITY TO PROHIBIT CADMIUM IN INDUSTRIAL OR CONSUMER PRODUCTS. WITH RESPECT TO CONSUMER FOOD PRODUCTS, THE AUTHORITY THERE WOULD BE FDA'S AUTHORITY, AND I KNOW THAT THEY HAVE EXPLORED THAT FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS. BUT AT THIS POINT IN TIME HAVE NOT UNDERTAKEN DOING THAT. NOW, THE TOXIC SUBSTANCE ACT PROVIDES FOR CONTROL OF THE USE AND THE MANUFACTURE AND THE REGISTRATION OF VARIOUS INDUSTRIAL TOXIC CHEMICALS, AND I THINK CADMIUM WILL BE CONSIDERED UNDER THE TOXIC SUBSTANCE ACT. I DON'T THINK THAT THAT WILL RESULT IN A SPECIFIED LEVEL OF CADMIUM IN ANY PARTICULAR TYPE OF PRODUCT, THOUGH. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? OKAY, THANK YOU. ------- STATEMENT OF THE CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH EPA HEARING ON MARCH 1, 1978 IN SAN DIEGO, ON EPA's PROPOSED CRITERIA ON THE ADDITION OF SEWAGE SLUDGE TO SOIL THAT WILL PRODUCE AN EDIBLE CROP My name is Michael L. Klado. I am a registered civil engineer employed by the California Department of Health, Public Health Division. It is my responsibility to develop the Department of Health's proposed policy and/or guidelines pertaining to the use of sewage sludge. I am presenting comments today on behalf of the Department of Health. My comments are on the topic of cadmium in sewage sludge that may be added to privately-owned agricultural land or to soil which may become a home vegetable garden. As we see it, the critical issue regarding the addition of sewage sludge to privately-owned agricultural land 1s that representatives of the federal Food and Drug Administration appear to be seriously concerned about possible increases 1n the amount of cadmium in the diet. FDA representatives have displayed their concern by Indicating that FDA may establish maximum permissible cadmium concen- trations In foods. If FDA takes actions adverse to the sale of foods which violate an FDA standard on cadmium, a farmer whose soil 1s rich in cadmium that is available for uptake by plants might have to restrict his plantings to: (1) species which transfer relatively little cadmium to the edible portion; (2) plants that do not produce food eaten by humans; or (3) plants not eaten by an animal that produces a product eaten by humans. To our knowledge, FDA has not indicated that it would exempt high cadmium produce from a standard to facilitate the use of cadmium-rich waste 1n agriculture. - 1 - ------- EPA's proposed criteria, published in the Federal Register on February 6, 1978, would allow agricultural soils to be made extraordinarily rich in cadmium through the addition of cadmium-rich sewage sludge. It appears essential that state and local agencies who regulate the use and disposal of wastes, and who advise fanners, know whether compliance with the numerical criteria proposed by EPA in the February 6, 1978 Federal Register will guarantee a farmer that his crops will not violate an FDA standard. It has been observed that solid organic matter in soil adsorbs cadmium and thereby helps restrict the transfer of cadmium to the soil solution where it might be taken up by plants. The addition of a substantial amount of sewage sludge to a soil that has little organic matter to start with (like many of the soils in the arid southwestern states) will cause a substantial percentage increase in the amount of solid organic matter in such soil. A substantial percentage increase in the amount of solid organic matter in the soil may provide a substantial percentage increase in the amount of cadmium which can be held in the soil without release to the soil solution. After sludge applications are permanently ceased much of the solid organic matter that was added to the soil by sludge applications will be lost due to decomposition. Completion of decompositon could take more than 15 years in upland soils. An upland soil in an arid southwestern state that had little organic matter before receiving sludge may again have little organic matter at the end of the period of decomposition. It appears reasonable to question whether the amount of cadmium taken up by plants from a sludge-treated, cadmium-rich soil that - 2 - ------- has little organic matter at the end of the period of decomposition might differ substantially from the amount of cadmium taken up by plants in the first few years after sludge is applied -- that is, when the soil is a newly-created, cadmium-rich soil containing a substantial amount of organic matter. We are not aware of any findings that assure that the adsorption capacity or other function of matter that will remain in soils of arid southwestern states at the end of the period of decomposition will be great enough to prevent an increase 1n the availability of cadmium for uptake by plants. Thus we question whether "worst case" situations have actually been revealed in past experiments 1n which the crops that were analyzed were grown soon (i.e., within a few years) after sludge was applied to soil. EPA could greatly aid state and local agencies who contemplate the use of the proposed criteria, by publishing the following information: 1. cadmium concentrations in non-leafy crops and leafy crops that will be avoided by compliance with the proposed criteria -- during a multi-year period preceding the permanent ceasing of applications of sludge; 2. cadmium concentrations in non-leafy crops and leafy crops that w11l be avoided by compliance with the proposed criteria after applica- tions of sludge have been permanently ceased and added sludge-borne organic matter has been decomposed to the extent possible 1n the arid southwestern states; 3. statements on whether those cadmium concentrations in non-leafy crops and leafy crops have been demonstrated to be avoidable by compliance with the proposed criteria 1n long-term experiments that represent - 3 - ------- the full range of non-leafy crops and leafy crops for which a California farmer may desire his soil to remain usable, and that represent the range of conditions that will occur in the root zone of a California farmer's soil when the farmer uses sludge and otherwise manages his soil 1n a conventional manner; 4. a description of the relationships between annual and cumulative amounts of cadmium applied, and cadmium concentrations in crops, that have been demonstrated to support the proposed criteria; 5. a description of the combinations of crops and soil conditions involved in experiments that demonstrated those relationships; and 6. statements on whether compliance with the proposed criteria will suffice to avoid violation of standards FDA may be expected to set on cadmium concentrations in non-leafy foods, and in leafy foods. In the absence of assurances that compliance with the proposed criteria will avoid the occurrence of specified cadmium contents in foods, it would appear appropriate that a sewerage agency that wishes its sludge to be used in agriculture has three reasonable alternative courses of action. The first alternative 1s to undertake appropriate field experiments which represent conditions that would occur in a farmer's soil after sludge is added, and which Indicate cadmium concentrations 1n the greatest cadmium-accumulating crops eaten by humans for which the fanner desires his soil to remain usable. The second alternative is try to find a farmer who does not wish his land to remain usable for production of food for which an FDA standard is apt to be set (e.g., food eaten by humans). And a third alternative is to purchase - A - ------- agricultural land to avoid motivations to produce food for which FDA standards are apt to be set. It appears that experiments undertaken or cited to support the addition of sludge to land not owned by a sewerage agency should be designed to represent the range of conditions that would occur 1n the root zone : (1) when the farmer uses sludge and otherwise manages his soil in a conventional manner; and (2) after the fanner stops applying sludge and does not replenish the solid organic matter which the sludge provided over and above that provided by crop residues and other sources. Methods by which the latter situation can be represented, or assumed to be represented, have shortcomings either with respect to practicality or lack of verification. However they appear better than proceeding without relevant data. Those methods include analyzing crops grown in sludge-treated soM 15 to 25 years after sludge applications have been stopped. Another method might be to simulate future chemical conditions by not adding sludge but adding readily degradable organic compounds of cadmium and other chemical substances as are 1n sludge. State and local agencies would be aided by Information pertaining to conversion of sludge-treated agricultural soil to residential lots where home vegetable gardens might be established. We recommend that EPA publish estimates of the amount of cadmium that would be 1n the diet of vegetarian and non-vegetarian home gardeners who produce as much of their own food as is practical In soil which was, until a time at least 15 years before the establishement of the home garden, treated with sludge by a farmer who added as much cadmium as allowed by the proposed EPA criteria, when the current pH level of the soil is: (1) as high as might occur 1n a calcareous soil after treatment with sludge; - 5 - ------- (2) 6.5, the level cited in the proposed EPA criteria; and (3) a lower pH which might occur in a formerly acidic soil where pH was raised to 6.5 during the period of sludge utilization. We wish to note that we have reviewed a paper by EPA staff in Cincinnati, entitled "An Appraisal of the Relative Health Risks Associated with Land Application of Municipal Sludge", and find no adequate support therein for the numerical criteria proposed in the Federal Register. We will shortly submit to EPA and the public our appraisal of that paper, which is contained in our technical bulletin entitled "Consideration of Chemical Substances in Sewage Sludge Added to Soil that will Produce an Edible Crop: A Public Health Perspective." We have scheduled three full-day seminar-public forums in March to discuss the topics covered by our bulletin and to hear the concerns of people who have reviewed it, and of other members of the public. These meetings will be: In Sacramento on Wednesday, March 22; in Berkeley on Tuesday, March 23; and in Los Angeles on Friday, March 24. The purpose of these meetings is: (1) to Involve the public as much as possible in decisions that will be made by the Department of Health, which pertain to the use of sewage sludge; and (2) to provide the public with technical information which they desire. We hope to obtain participation by EPA personnel in these meetings to discuss technical Issues, such as those 1 have mentioned today. - 6 - ------- STATEMENT OF CLARENCE E. KAUFMAN SOLID WASTE PROGRAM MANAGER COUNTY OF SAN DIEGO THE COUNTY'S SOLID WASTE STAFF HAS CAREFULLY REVIEWED THE PROPOSED CLASSIFICATION CRITERIA FOR SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL FACILITIES IN CONJUNCTION WITH OUR COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT, REGIONAL WATER QUALITY CONTROL BOARD, AND OTHER INTERESTED PARTIES. OUR NORMAL PRACTICE IN REVIEWING PROPOSED REGULATIONS IS TO BE AS CRITICAL AS POSSIBLE, AND ON THIS OCCASION, I THINK IT IS FAIR TO SAY OUR INTENT WAS TO BE MORE CRITICAL THAN EVER. CERTAINLY, THESE REGULATIONS ARE VITALLY IMPORTANT TO THE COUNTY, AND ANY OTHER AGENCY WHICH HAS RESPONSIBILITY FOR OPERATING OR REGU- LATING LAND DISPOSAL OF SOLID WASTES. TO OUR SURPRISE, WE FOUND VERY LITTLE TO CRITICIZE. I CAN ONLY CONGRATULATE THE EPA STAFF FOR DEVELOPING SOLID WASTE FACILITY CRITERIA WHO) WILL EFFECTIVELY PRO- TECT THE ENVIRONMENT FROM DEGRADATION BY SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL FACILITIES, AND YET ALLOW RESPONSIBLE AGENCIES TO CONTINUE TO PROVIDE DISPOSAL SERVICE WITH A REASONABLE AMOUNT OF REGULATION. YOUR PROPOSED CRITERIA HAVE BEEN WISELY DIRECTED TOWARD A STANDARD OF PERFORMANCE TO BE ATTAINED, RATHER THAN ARBITRARY RESTRICTION'S TO BE IMPOSED ON DISPOSAL FACILITY LOCATION, DESIGN, OPERATION, AND MAINTENANCE. IT APPEARS THAT THE INTENT IS TO PLACE RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT AND ENFORCEMENT OF DETAILED REGULATIONS AT THE STATE AND LOCAL LEVEL, WHICH WILL CERTAINLY ENHANCE THEIR EFFECTIVENESS. THESE CRITERIA WILL IMPACT SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL IN SAN DIEGO COUNTY IN SEVERAL WAYS. FIRST, THE PROHIBITION 01: OPEN BURNING OF RESIDENTIAL WASTES WILL INCREASE THE' AMOUNT OF SOLID WASTE TO BE DISPOSED IN THE MOUNTAIN AND DESERT REGIONS OF THE COUNTY. LAST YEAR, 956 BURNING PERMITS WERE ISSUED TO- RESIDENTS OF THESE AREAS AND AN UNKNOWN NUMBER OF ADDITIONAL RESIDENTS BURNED THEIR WASTES WITHOUT HAVING OBTAINED A PERMIT. SINCE THE COUNTY PROVIDES A NUMBER OF BIN SITES AND LANDFILLS IN THESE AREAS WITHOUT COST TO THE AREA RESIDENTS, THE INCREASE IN WASTE ------- Pa^e 2 VOLUME WILL INCREASE THE COUNTY'S COST IN PROVIDING THIS SERVICE. THE AMOUNT OF THIS INCREASE CANNOT BE ESTIMATED AT THIS TIME. ALTHOUGH SAN DIEGO COUNTY HAS I'OR MANY YEARS OPERATED ITS SANITARY LANDFILLS IN COMPLIANCE WITH ALL LAWS AND REGULATIONS, IT APPEARS THAT SOME ADDITIONAL EFEORT WILL HAVE TO BE EXPENDED ON OUR PART IN PROVIDING SUFFICIENT MONITORING FOR LEACHATE AND GAS MIGRATION TO PROVIDE ASSURANCE THAT THE STANDARDS SET FORTH IN THE PROPOSED CRITERIA ARE MET. WE DO NOT EXPECT THIS EFFORT TO SIGNIFICANTLY IMPACT OUR DISPOSAL OPERATIONS. SOME SEWAGE SLUDGE IS PRESENTLY BEING DISPOSED OF IN THE COUNTY'S LANDFILLS, AND THERE IS A STRONG LIKELIHOOD THAT THESE QUANTITIES WILL GREATLY INCREASE WITHIN THE NEXT FEW YEARS, PARTICULARLY IF SECONDARY TREATMENT OF SEWAGE IS APPLIED. ALTHOUGH THE COUNTY BELIEVES ITS EXISTING INDUSTRIAL WASTE CONTROL PROGRAM PRO- VIDES EFFECTIVE CONTROL OVER QUANTITIES OF HEAVY METALS ENTERING THE SEWERAGE SYSTEM, THE PROI'OSED PROGRAM WILL PROVIDE ADDED ASSURANCE THAT THE FOOD CHAIN IS PROTECTED FROM HEAVY METAL INTRUSION. WE DO NOT HAVE ANY ESTIMATE OF THE ADDI- TIONAL COSTS OF THIS PROGRAM AS YET. IN SUMMARY, I WOULD LIKE TO EMPHASIZE THAT WE BELIEVE THE PROPOSED CRITERIA ARE WORKABLE AND REASONABLE, AND WILL LEAD TO SUCCESSFUL IMPLEMENTATION OF THE MANDATE OF PUBLIC LAW 94-580. ------- Attendees: Public Hearing, March 1, 1978 Cecil Lue-Hing, D.Sc., P.E. Director Research and Development The Metropolitan Sanitary District of Greater Chicago 100 East Erie Street Chicago, Illinois 60611 Henry C. Hyde Study Manager, San Francisco Bay Region Wastewater Solids Study Mosswood Park Building 3505 Broadway, Suite 815 Oakland, California 94611 Herb Iwahiro California StateSolid Waste Mgmt. Bd. Chief Div. of Planning and Implementation 1709 "11"th Street Sacramento, California 95814 William A. Jones Site Manager Nuclear Engineering Company, Inc. P.O. Box 578 Beatty, Nevada 89003 Joseph A. Kaminster U.S. Navy Sanitary Engineer 1220 Pacific Highway Code 114H San Diego, California 92132 Clarence E, Kaufman Solid Waste Program Manager County of San Diego 5555 Overland Avenue San Diego, California 92123 E.A. "Skip" Kazmarek Coordinator, Chemical Substances Georgia Pacific Corporation 900 S.W. Fifth Avenue Portland, Oregon 97204 H. Clay Kellogg, Jr., President Kellogg Supply Inc. 23934 S. Figueroa Street Carson, California 90745 Micheal L. Kiado California Department of Health Senior Waste Management Engineer 714 "P" Street Sacramento, CA 95814 ------- David Cohen Office of Water Recycling (SWRCB) Special Consultant Post Office Box 100 Sacramento, California 95814 Thorn Coughlin Met. Engineer The Bunker Hill Company P.O. Box 29 Kellogg, Idaho 83837 Bill Davis Project Manager, LA/OMA Project P.O. Box 4998 Whittier, California 90607 M-F. Debonis EPA Region II Chief, Solid Waste Branch 26 Federal Plaza New York City, New York 10007 Raymond R. Edwards Orange County EMA Chief, Water Resources P.O. Box 1078 Santa Ana, California 92702 Lawrence P. Gazda Chief, Waste Management Branch U.S. Environmental Protection Agency I860 Lincoln Street Denver, Colorado 80203 Dale Gruel Hirsch & Company Consulting Engineers 7850 Mission Center Court Suite 101 San Diego, California 92108 j. Mark Helm Marketing Applications Manager BSP Division, Envirotech Corp. One Davis Drive Belmont, California 94002 Robert E. Van Heuit Division Engineer, County Sanitation Districts of L.A. County 1955 Workman Mill Road P.O. Box 4998 Whittier, California 90607 ------- R.D. Amber EPA Region VI 904 Waste Management Rep. 1201 Elm Street Dallas, Texas 75270 William E. Anderson Chemist Dow Chemical USA P.O. Box 1398 Pittsburg, California 94565 Keith Amundson 5130 Patti Jo Drive Carmichael, CA 95608 Glenn G. Baker Project Officer SCA Services, Inc. Western Region P.O. Box 967 311 F Street Chula Vista, California 92012 David L. Bauer Corporate Director of Environmental Engineering Affairs IT Corporation 4575 Pacheco Blvd. Martinex, California 94553 John Beale Manager, Environmental Information Dow Chemical USA 2030 Dow Center Midland, Michigan 48640 Richard A. Boettcher, P.E. Technology Representative Civil Engineering Laboratory, NCBC Port Hueneme, California 93043 Jerry D. Boyle CH2MHill 1200 3rd Avenue Suite 400 San Diego, California 92101 Robert Bulman County of San Bernadino Refuse Disposal Analyst 825 E. 3rd Street San"Bernardino, California 92415 ------- J. Keith McCartney Cousins Associates 152 South Pacific Oceanside, California 92054 Hector H. Mendieta, P.E. Texas Department of Health, Division of Solid Waste Mgmt. 1100 W. "49"th Street Austin, Texas 78756 Paul Mnoian NU-WAY Solid Fill Dump 14 5 W. Duarte Road Monrovia, California A.L. Page University of California professor Riverside, California 92506 Charles H. Powell, Sc.D PPG Industries, Inc. One Gateway Center Pittsburg, Pennsylvania 15222 Chris Robbins Hirsch & Company Environmental Analyst 7850 Mission Center Court San Diego, California 92108 Robert Romaine County (SD) Health Dept. Assistant Sanitarian Sanitation Division County Building William Schremp, P.E. EPA Region III Solid Waste Program 6th & Walnut Street Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19106 Micheal W. Selna Los Angeles County Sanitation District Supervising Civil Engineer Post Office Box 4998 Whittier, California 90607 Barney Simonsen Vice President IR Corporation 336 W. Anaheim Street , Wilmington, California 90744 ------- Douglas L. Strauch, P.E. Chief Enforcement Division 1709 "ll"th Street Sacramento, California 95814 John Sudol EPA Environmental Engineer 215 Fermont San Francisco, California 94105 Morris G. Tucker U.S.E.P.A. Chief, Waste Management Section 1235 Baltimore Kansas City, Missouri 64108 Howard Wright Environmental Specialist State of California 2014 "T" Street Sacramento, California 95814 ------- Region I John F. Kennedy Bldg. Boston. MA 02203 (617) 223-7210 Region II 26 Federal Plaza New York. NY 10007 (212) 264-2515 Region III 6th & Walnut Sts. Philadelphia, PA 19106 (215) 597-9814 Region IV 345 Courtland St., N.E Atlanta, GA 30308 (404) 881-4727 Region V 230 South Dearborn St. Chicago, IL 60604 (312) 353-2000 Region VI 1201 Elm St., First International Bldg. Dallas. TX 75270 (214) 749-1962 Region VII 1735 Baltimore Ave Kansas City. MO 64108 (816) 374-5493 Region VIII 1860 Lincoln St. Denver, CO 80203 (303) 837-3895 Region IX 215 Fremont St San Francisco, CA 94105 (415)556-2320 Region X 1200 6th Ave. Seattle, WA 98101 (206) 442-5810 U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY Regional Offices *.j. (View Y 0*k Philadelphia £U ------- ------- |