FLORIDA – ARCHER – OCTOBER 19, 2007
TWO WELLS CONTAMINATED WITH NITRATES - SLUDGE VICTIMS SUFFER NAUSEA, DIZZINESS AND FLU-LIKE
SYMPTOMS
http://www.gainesvillesun.com/article/20071016/NEWS/710160321/1018 Article published Oct 19, 2007
Utility gets OK to keep spreading sludge despite residents' worries
BY NATHAN CRABBE THE GAINESVILLE SUN Gainsville FL (EXCERPTS)
Neighbors say heavy winds can blow residue from the dusty site onto their properties. They say these
dust clouds coincide with health problems such as nausea, dizziness and flu-like symptoms.
There's been anecdotal evidence that people living near sludge sites are getting sick, said Jordan
Pecchia, an assistant professor of environmental engineering at Yale University.
While bacteria and viruses had been thought to be killed in the air, Pecchia is studying whether pathogens or metals
can be airborne. He said the research is ongoing and the issue is unresolved.
"There's not a huge amount of evidence that it's affected human health, but there's a lot of uncertainty," he said.
Groundwater is another concern. The farm is located in a part of the county where residents rely on wells and where
sandy soils and a lack of a solid barrier between the surface and the groundwater can allow contaminants to enter the
aquifer.
The county Health Department has tested 18 wells on and around the farm. The tests found nitrate levels
exceeding state drinking-water standards in one well on the farm and another just east of the property,
said Anthony Dennis, the county's assistant director for environmental health.
While nitrates help plants grow, they can cause human health problems such as a blood disorder in infants. One of the
wells with high nitrate levels isn't being used, and the owner of the other well is being offered a water filter under a
state water-quality program, Dennis said.
He said follow-up testing is being done to determine whether those wells and others east of the farm have high level of
metals or other contaminants.
Biro and other concerned neighbors live to the west of the farm. Dennis said tests suggest groundwater is flowing in
the opposite direction, meaning the area where most residents live is not at risk.
"Given the data we've collected and reviewed to this point, we do not feel there's a significant risk to citizens living
around the site," he said.
GOAT SYMBOL OF CONCERNS
But neighbors aren't convinced. Biro said his horses have had problems reproducing and his wife has experienced
headaches and nausea.
“"He is the father of all these goats ... but he developed udders," he said.
Chris DeCubellis, a neighbor who works as an animal-science extension officer in Gilchrist County, said he worries that
residents and hospitals are contributing pharmaceuticals to sludge. Drugs such as birth-control pills could have
caused the change to the goat, he said."All that stuff goes down the drain," he said.
“But Harrison of Cornell's waste institute said a study of sheep reared on sludge treated pastures found
evidence of hormonal disruption.
"It's not insane to think that feminization of animals is an issue," she
said.
Patricia Cline, a risk-assessment expert with CH2M Hill, working with GRU,
said such chemicals are incredibly complex. A complete diagnosis would be
needed to connect to problems with human or animal health, she said.
"It's hard to link them with what we know is in the solids," she said.
But Biro said he doesn't have the money to fully investigate the problem.
GRU should be responsible for proving the site is safe, he said.
"It's a sad day when a citizen has to prove he should be protected," he
said.”
FLORIDA – ARCHER – OCT. 2007 – TWO WEOLS CONTAMINATED WITH NITRATES - SLUDGE VICTIMS SUFFER
NAUSEA, DIZZINESS AND FLU-LIKE SYMPTOMS