Texas County declares a state of emergency and has taken steps to seek federal support over farmland contaminated with harmful “eternal chemicals” as concerns grow over concerns about the safety of fertilizers made from sewage. Masu.
Johnson County, south of Fort Worth, has been rolled since county investigators discovered high levels of chemicals called PFA, or polyfluoroalkyl substances, at the county's two cattle ranches in 2023. .
The county says PFA, also known as eternal chemicals because they are not broken in the environment, comes from contaminated fertilizers used on adjacent farms. The fertilizer was made from treated sewage from a Fort Worth wastewater treatment plant. The New York Times investigates the use of contaminated sewage sludge as fertilizer, focusing in part on the experiences of Johnson County ranch.
Used in everyday items such as non-stick cooking utensils and dirt-resistant carpets, PFA has been found to increase the risk of certain types of cancer, including birth defects, developmental delays in children, and more It can cause health damage.
The county commissioner passed a resolution this week calling for Texas Gov. Greg Abbott to join the declaration and seek federal disaster aid.
“This is unknown territory,” Larry Wooley, one of the county's four commissioners, said in an interview. He said the funds are directed towards testing and monitoring drinking water, cleaning, and euthanasia of cows contaminated from soil, crops and water.
Johnson County is also pushing Texas to block sewage sludge use and fertilize local farmland. “Ultimately, our goal is to stop the flow of contaminants into the county,” said county judge Christopher Bodecker.
For decades, farmers across the country have been encouraged by the federal government to use sewage sludge treated as fertilizer for its rich nutrients and reduce the amount of sludge that must be embedded in landfills. . Spreading sewage across farmland also reduces the use of fertilizers made from fossil fuels.
However, an ever-growing number of research has shown that black sludge made from sewage flowing from homes and factories contains large concentrations of PFA and other harmful contaminants.
Last month, under the Biden administration, the Environmental Protection Agency warned for the first time that PFAS-contaminated sewage sludge, which is used as fertilizer, can pollute soil, groundwater, crops and livestock, pose human health risks. did.
The Biden administration has also set drinking water standards for certain types of PFA, designating two chemicals as hazardous substances that must be cleaned under the national superfund laws. The future of these measures is uncertain under the Trump administration. The EPA says there is no safe level of exposure to these two PFAs.
There were few tests on the farm. Maine is the only state to systematically begin testing PFA farmlands, closing dozens of dairy farms found in contamination.
Johnson County is the first to directly seek federal aid. But it remains unclear how counties could withdraw federal funds, particularly amid the Trump administration's freeze on federal spending.
President Biden's bipartisan infrastructure law provided $2 billion in funding to address PFAs and other pollutants in drinking water. What must be demanded at the state level is this future of funding, which remains uncertain in the new administration.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency also has funds available to test wells, which must be requested by the state, but that money is usually distributed after a natural disaster. President Trump also said he is targeting FEMA funding and hopes that the state will handle the disaster without the help of federal agencies. The Department of Agriculture is also providing support to farmers affected by PFAS contamination, but the program is currently limited to dairy farmers.
Johnson County is tied up.
While President Trump was hostile to regulations, he also spoke about the campaign's trajectory of “removing dangerous chemicals from our environment.” Also, concerns about PFA pollution have reached several deep red states and counties, such as Johnson County, which voted overwhelmingly for Trump.
EPA and FEMA did not provide any comments.
In December, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sued the biggest PFAS manufacturer, saying he knew the dangers of these chemicals, but continued to sell their use. The GOP-controlled Texas Legislature is considering a bill that sets limits on PFA for sludge fertilizers and requires producers to test for chemicals.
Texas has not shown whether it supports the Johnson County declaration or its demand for federal assistance. The governor's office did not respond to requests for comment.
Ricky Richter, a spokesman for the Texas Environmental Quality Commission, a state environmental regulator, said that the agency's own analysis of PFAS-level analysis discovered by Johnson County investigators has shown that harm to human health and the environment. He said he had not suggested.
The agency did not immediately provide details of the analysis.
Johnson County officials said they were standing behind their discoveries. Ranchers are suing fertilizer providers, claiming that the contamination of their land is slowly becoming sick and killing livestock. They still care for the surviving cows, but no longer send them to the market.
