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Since the passage of the Clean Water Act in 1972, many wastewater treatment plants have operated with a simple environmental trade-off — they treat water from population centers, industrial sources, landfills and elsewhere, and the leftover solids can be sent to farms to use as fertilizer.

But that arrangement has neared a breaking point in recent years, strained by new understanding of pollutants like PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances. In communities around the U.S., the chemicals are exiting the plants via its sludge, known as biosolids, and in some cases contaminating farmland. 

The question of where the biosolids can go now — either for treatment or reuse — has left the waste industry and policymakers around the country mired in tough policy decisions.

Some feel left in the dark by the U.S. EPA, which recently argued in court that it’s under no obligation to regulate PFAS in biosolids at all, or even place them on its list of pollutants to watch. Instead, the agency has issued nonbinding guidance on addressing contamination which emphasizes reducing pollutants, as well as monitoring programs and collaboration with manufacturers.

In a statement, an agency spokesperson defended the process, and further noted that any risk reduction requirements will be weighed against “economic costs and treatment feasibility.”

“The presence of a pollutant in sewage sludge alone does not necessarily mean that there is risk to [human health] or the environment from its use or disposal,” Dominique Joseph, a senior communications advisor with EPA, said in an emailed statement. 

The agency also said it would finalize a risk assessment this year for the presence of two chemicals in biosolids, PFOA and PFOS, but not others. And while the EPA has issued guidance on PFAS destruction and disposal, many advocates remain unhappy with the lack of a common standard that they feel could compel more wastewater treatment plants to install technology to reduce contamination. 

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