The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA

Abstract #50086

Duff Wilson, The Seattle Times, P.O. Box 70, Seattle, WA 98111, 206-464-2288, dwilson@seattletimes.com

Industrial waste with arsenic, cadmium, lead, mercury and dioxins can be recycled into common fertilizer with absolutely no testing, standards or disclosure. Ashes and acids, slags and tailings, from steel, copper, brass, galvanizing, electronics, chemical, mining, cement kiln, gypsum and even nuclear industries, can be called "fertilizer" if they include some plant food chemicals such as zinc or iron, or "liming material" if they are alkaline such as coal combustion waste. These industrial wastes are less regulated in the United States than sewage sludge, and are more active in the soil. This fertilizer loophole saves industry millions of dollars annually by avoiding the cost of safer disposal or more complete recycling. Topsoil has become the legal repository for wastes no longer allowed as emissions to air or water. The presentation reviews the problem, and its potential public health costs. It will review the mixed findings from research on the impact of these waste-fertilizers on public health. Some public health advocates say the practice could affect people, especially children, who already bear cumulative exposures to many of the same substances, at levels higher than "safe" limits. Some fertilizer workers claim they've been poisoned by cadmium, lead and dioxins. The presentation draws on new research, as well as on previous writing nominated for the Pulitzer Prize, culminating in the presenter's new book, ""Fateful Harvest: The True Story of a Small Town, a Global Industry, and a Toxic Secret."

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the presentation, the participant in this session will be able to

• Identify three industries currently recycling industrial waste into fertilizer.
• List four heavy metals found in testing to be present in common fertilizers at elevated levels.
• List groups of people that may be exposed to hydrogen sulfide in agricultural operations.
• Articulate public health concerns for two kinds of groups with exposure to fertilizers, and summarize the state of the science regarding those concerns.

Keywords: Environmental Health, Food Safety

Related Web page: www.fatefulharvest.com/page579504.htm

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I have a significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.
Relationship: I work for the Seattle Times newspaper. Some of the research presented in this session was first described in a series of articles in that paper.