Investigators link PFAS contamination to Synagro fertilizer, but the company disputes the claims with its own study.
JOHNSON COUNTY, Texas — It’s a controversy over contamination—one that has ranchers worried, investigators concerned, and a company that makes biosolid fertilizer pushing back.
In Johnson County last year, a local investigator and a lab found high levels of PFAS on a ranch thereafter cattle and fish started dying. PFAS, also known as “forever chemicals,” don’t break down easily and are known to cause cancer, said Dana Ames, an investigator with Johnson County.
“PFAS is persistent and can remain in the ground for decades,” she said.
Ames says the contamination is directly linked to biosolids made by Synagro – a company that makes fertilizer from human waste.
“We could not identify any other source other than the biosolids,” Ames said.
But Synagro strongly disagrees with Johnson County’s findings. They recently revealed the results of their own testing.
The company commissioned an independent study by Parsons Corporation and Dr. Linda Lee of Purdue University. It released its conclusions in a news release this week:
“The May/June 2024 Grandview Farm data provide no evidence to explain the PFAS on the two adjacent farms reported by PEER,” referring to the lab that Johnson County partnered with to investigate PFAS levels.
“The PFPrA signature in the ponds, wells, and soils located on the adjacent farms reported in the PEER report does not match what PEER reported for the ‘giveaway’ December 2022 Granulite sample which contained no PFPrA…This is another indicator that the PFAS found on the neighboring farms is from another source (i.e., not Synagro’s Granulite product).”
“This report provides valuable conclusions regarding the application of Granulite on the Grandview Farm in Johnson County,” said Bob Preston, CEO and Chairman of the Board of Synagro. “We are committed to sustainable solutions and will continue to support the responsible beneficial use of biosolids.”
Jimmy Slaughter, a lawyer representing Synagro in litigation with Johnson County ranchers and landowners, said in an interview with WFAA that “farmers love biosolids.”
“For many decades, with many hundreds of thousands of land applications, it’s been beneficial to the environment,” Slaughter said.
Synagro Chief Commercial Officer Pam Racey told WFAA that PFAS is everywhere.
“PFAS is in many things—including insecticides, pesticides, fracking fluids,” Racey said. “It’s ubiquitous.”
In court filings, Synagro says they’ve done nothing wrong and is asking a judge to dismiss the case, which is pending in Dallas federal court.
Synagro’s motion to dismiss says that the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality investigated complaints about the Johnson County contamination, and on Aug. 4, 2023, the agency concluded that “no violations resulted from this investigation” and that “no violations are being alleged.”
The Texas Right to Farm Act “entirely bars private suits like this targeting lawful agricultural operations like the provision of valuable fertilizer to Texas farms and ranches,” Synagro’s dismissal motion states.
Now, as legal battles unfold, farmers, investigators, environmental advocates and even Synagro agree on one thing – they need guidance from the EPA to determine what amount of PFAS is safe in biosolids.
In a lawsuit filed on March 10, the City of Fort Worth blames the federal government, the military, and several chemical manufacturers for contaminating its water supply with so-called “forever chemicals.”
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